


Crime in Magic City

by chicago_ruth



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Case Fic, Community: paperlegends, M/M, Multi, Mystery, Threesome - M/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-04
Updated: 2013-08-04
Packaged: 2017-12-22 10:18:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 55,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/912043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chicago_ruth/pseuds/chicago_ruth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>September 1927: Chief of Police Tristan de Bois is murdered, and Private Investigator Merlin Emrys is a convenient suspect. After all, he's been suspected of magic use almost since the first day Prohibition went into effect. Now Merlin needs to try to clear his name, keep the gangs of Camelot from running the city to the ground, and sort out the mess that is his social life. </p><p>[For the <a href="http://paperlegends.livejournal.com/">Paper Legends challenge</a>, with <a href="http://fuckyeah.livejournal.com/293991.html">Art by La Temperanza</a>]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Crime in Magic City

**Author's Note:**

> For archiving purposes, I've avoided putting the minor pairings in the tags -- I know how annoying it is to search for a minor pairing and find completely unrelated fics instead. However, for those who are interested, this fic does contain various combinations of characters throughout the fic, including: Arthur/Gwen, Merlin/Morgana, Merlin/Mordred, and Gwen/Lance.
> 
> I think first and foremost, I need to thank [Tassos](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Tassos). Without her, this fic would not exist -- I'd still be flailing around not knowing where the fic was going. She also single-handedly saved my articles from sounding like high school blog entries. And this fic would have a lot more semicolons and dashes in it ;) Any mistakes still in the fic are my own, and I'm trying to get them fixed as I notice them.
> 
> Thank you also to [La Temperanza](http://archiveofourown.org/users/La_Temperanza/pseuds/La_Temperanza) for her beautiful artwork! I'm floored at how awesome these pics are. ♥♥ [Go check out her art here and shower her with praise](http://fuckyeah.livejournal.com/293991.html).
> 
> The fic itself uses custom style sheets in order to make the newspaper articles stand out from the rest of it. I don't believe those transfer over when downloading the fic, so I've added line breaks around most of the articles. For the "best" reading experience, I would definitely recommend sticking to AO3.
> 
> It's been a real journey to write this, both in terms of research I did (and the liberties I decided to take) and actually sitting down to write. I couldn't have done it without all the lovely people cheering me on. Thank you everybody for reading, and I hope you enjoy the fic!

* * *

Camelot Tribune

**Chief of Police Dead in Gang Shooting**

Camelot, September 19 1927 -- Chief of Police Tristan de Bois, known for his success rate in putting magicians behind bars, and two civilians were killed during a gang firefight in Mercia. Police say a combination of bullets and magic were used in a confrontation that could be heard for at least five blocks. Witnesses to the scene say that Chief de Bois nobly stepped forward to try to rescue the two other victims, but was ultimately not able to protect them against the spells. Chief de Bois managed to shoot one of the gang members; it is unknown who this gang member was or which gang he belonged to.

When asked to comment, Assistant District Attorney Arthur Pendragon said, "The loss of Chief de Bois will be dearly felt. Since his appointment two years ago, the fight against magicians has turned in our favor. I will do everything in my power to see to it that his murderer is brought to justice."

Tristan de Bois was the brother of Ygraine Pendragon, Arthur Pendragon's mother and Governor Uther Pendragon's wife. A.D.A Pendragon declined to comment on their familial relationship.

This incident is another in a long line of gang related deaths that have taken place in the past year, many of which involved magic, a favored gang method for running and enforcing illegal operations. Governor Pendragon has pledged more resources to bring the gangs to justice. 

* * *

Merlin scoffed. "Maybe if we didn't have this damned Prohibition, people wouldn't turn to gangs for their spells." He turned the page, hoping to find something more interesting to read, but the Camelot Tribune had decided to use the death of Chief de Bois to run a set of anti-magic articles. Sports was similarly uninteresting -- the Camelot Knights had lost again -- and only in the society pages did he find something noteworthy.

"Morgana is in town again," Merlin said, looking up across the office. He saw Gwen's face pinch slightly, like she was trying to keep herself calm. "I'm sure it's nothing."

Gwen rolled her eyes at him. "It's never nothing. Morgana wouldn't be in town unless it was important, considering how she left last time."  
True enough. Even the article in the society pages pointed out how rare it was for Morgana to be seen in the city. After all, the scandalous bastard daughter of Uther Pendragon was hardly welcome in the capital. Most of her old circle of acquaintances would probably refuse to give her the time of day.

Merlin sighed and set the newspaper aside. It wouldn't be so bad if they at least had some business, but Smith & Emrys had been client-free for the past week. Merlin was terrible at drumming up business for himself, and Gwen hadn't had much luck either. They really needed to get out and hand out more business cards.

"Should we call it a day? I don't think anybody is going to come by," Merlin suggested as he pushed away from his desk and began packing up.

"Already? It's only three." Gwen pointed at the large clock standing on the end table by the window. The dial was turned to show the sun, smiling down at them; Gwen insisted it brightened up the room, while Merlin barely repressed a shudder at the strange, unmoving face. That alone was reason enough to leave the office early.

"You can stay if you want?" Merlin pulled his coat on and checked to make sure his keys were still in his pocket. "I'll be at Mary's for dinner and probably be at home in the evening, if you need to contact me."

"Right, gotcha." Gwen waved him off. "Go, shoo. Let me do the accounting in peace."

Merlin laughed and let himself out the office door into the hall. Good thing he had Gwen, because if it were up to him, their private investigation agency would probably just fall apart. He let his fingers trail over the door briefly, tracing over the letters of "Smith." It had been a different name before, but the new name was just as good.

"She's doing a good job, Will," Merlin whispered. "You'd be proud."

Merlin stared for a moment longer, then shook himself out of his reverie and made his way down the stairs.

He'd made it about one block, to the corner newspaper stand, when two police officers approached him. They planted themselves one at each side, boxing Merlin in.

"Merlin Emrys?" one of them asked. 

Merlin sighed and nodded. "What can I do for you, officers?" Neither of the two officers looked particularly noteworthy, nor were they the friendly faces from Merlin's own neighborhood. They looked rather more like--

"We've been asked to bring you in for a few quick questions."

Merlin's shoulders slumped and he groaned. "Again? What's it about this time?"

The two officers looked at each other. "We aren't at liberty to say."

"Right. Figures." Merlin looked around the street and spotted a pay telephone. "Look, can I make a telephone call first? So my partner knows not to wait up for me."

The taller of the two officers nodded. "We'll be watching though, so don't try anything funny."

Not that they would recognize anything funny if it happened right in front of their noses. Merlin had half a mind to use magic to slip away, but it was always better to cooperate with law enforcement. He used his last nickel to dial through to the office.

Busy. Merlin gaped. He had just stepped out of the door, how could Gwen already be on the telephone? Irritated, he slammed the receiver down. It wouldn't be too hard to magic his nickel back out, but he didn't want to risk it with the police watching him.

"Done?" 

Merlin nodded. "Let's go. The sooner we get started, the sooner I'm free to go."

One of the police officers scoffed, as if he doubted that Merlin would be going free.He was probably new on the job. Nobody must have filled him in on the last ten times Merlin had been pulled in for questioning.

* * *

The interview room looked the same as ever: gray walls, gray table, gray chairs.Sargeant Aredian tapped a pencil against a pad of paper while Merlin fidgeted in his seat.

"So you have no alibi for yesterday afternoon?" Aredian repeated.

"I already told you. I was at home, reading a book." 

"Which nobody can confirm. Several witnesses saw you at the crime scene. Let me see…" Aredian pulled a sheet of paper out of one of the folders. "'A tall youth with black hair and blue eyes,' said one witness, who also remembers your blue eyes because she noticed them turning gold just before you threw a spell at Chief de Bois and killed him."

Merlin grit his teeth. "That can't be me. For one, I don't have magic, so my eyes can't turn gold."

Aredian hmm'ed. "That's not what Assistant District Attorney Pendragon told me. He seems to believe you are waist deep in magic."

Figured. Arthur Pendragon had been trying to get Merlin convicted of a magic-related crime--any crime--for the past several years. Merlin shook his head. "He is mistaken. He's carrying a grudge because his false accusations against me don't stick. He can't seem to grasp that I don't have magic."

"Are you accusing the Assistant District Attorney of being irrational?"

"I'm accusing him of not having all the facts and jumping to conclusions."

Aredian scribbled something onto his notepad. "I've read your file, Mr. Emrys. Or should I be calling you Mr. Balinson? That _is_ the name you were born under, is it not?"

Merlin groaned and leaned back against the hard chair. "I had my name legally changed six years ago, you can look up all the paperwork."

"I do wonder why you felt you had to do so. Six years ago... isn't that when the street riots happened?" The table screeched when Aredian pushed it hard enough to slam the edge against Merlin's stomach; Merlin gasped harshly and doubled over in pain.

"Let me see... " Aredian flipped through his notepad, "Ah, yes. You filed to have your name changed a week after Nimueh Lake's funeral. Why would you suddenly need a new name, I wonder."

Merlin's hands curled into fists, the nails digging into his palms. "No reason. I wanted to change my name to something more dramatic." He kept his gaze firmly on the table; if he looked at Aredian, he might give himself away. It was hard enough already not to push the table away, with his magic brimming just under his skin and begging to be released.

 _No_ , he told himself firmly. The only way he could continue to avoid scrutiny from law enforcement was if he did not use magic where they could prove it.

Aredian stood up and walked around the table, right up behind Merlin. Every instinct in Merlin told him to run away, and his magic was getting harder to rein in -- he almost flung Aredian away when he placed his hand on the back of Merlin's neck.

"I know what you are, Emrys," Aredian whispered right into his ear, "And this time, you will not escape. The higher ups have taken a personal interest in ensuring you are locked up for life." He forcefully released Merlin, flinging his torso forward and onto the surface of the table.

A nervous laugh escaped Merlin's throat. "So, what, you're going to frame me for the chief's death?"

"Frame is a very negative word. I'd prefer to think of it as making the evidence fit the crimes."

A chill ran up Merlin's spine. In all the time he'd complained about the justice system in Camelot, he'd never been confronted with such blatant corruption. At this point, he might not have any choice but to use magic if he wanted to get out unscathed. 

There was a knock on the door, startling Merlin enough that he gasped. Aredian looked at him for a moment, pure disdain clear in his expression, then turned to the door and said, "Enter."

Detective Leon Kent, one of the detectives Merlin actually liked, strode in carrying a piece of paper. He handed it to Aredian and leaned in to whisper something in his ear.

Whatever he said, it made Aredian scowl. "He always calls when I'm busy."

"I would hurry." Leon looked at the clock hanging on the wall behind Merlin. "I doubt he's going to wait for you."

"Of course. The mayor's time is important, after all," Aredian said, and he stepped away from Merlin with a growl. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you, Mr. Balinson. Detective Kent here will keep you company."

He stormed out. Apparently Aredian wasn't particularly fond of speaking with the mayor. With Merlin's luck, it would put Aredian into an even worse mood when he next tried to question Merlin. Hopefully there wouldn't be a next time.

Merlin sighed and slumped back into his chair. "Thank god. I thought I would have to do something drastic."

Leon chuckled at that. "You're too smart for that. No matter how hard we try, we can't seem to catch you in the act."

The first time they had met, Leon had still been a beat cop. He'd stopped Merlin, hoping to catch him in the act of leaving extortion notes, but of course there was nothing to find. Even seven years ago Merlin had been smart enough to keep all incriminating evidence out of sight. Still, he'd arrested Merlin several times, and somehow they'd ended up building a rapport. Probably because unlike so many other cops, Leon didn't actually hate druids and magic users.

Now Leon was a detective, and he took on more serious crimes than just stopping anybody he suspected of possessing magical items.

"A.D.A Pendragon is waiting outside," Leon said. "He wants to talk to you."

"Can I pass? Talking to Pendragons makes me feel sick for days." Merlin ignored Leon's laugh and made his way to the door. Just as he was reaching for the doorknob, the door flew open and Merlin was confronted with the person he'd been trying to avoid.

"Mr. Emrys. I have a few things to discuss with you." Arthur Pendragon didn't even bother with a single word in greeting, and wasn't that just typical.

"I'm pretty sure you've got nothing on me, so I'm going to get going." Merlin tried to push pass Arthur, but of course the other man wouldn't budge.

Arthur just nodded to Leon, who manhandled Merlin back into the chair. "There's a matter of how you murdered Chief de Bois."

"How many times do I have to say it? I didn't murder him!" At this point, Merlin felt like the room must be echoing. Story of his life though; nobody ever believed him when he said he was innocent. Sometimes he barely believed himself. "And anyway, I refuse to talk to you."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Detective Kent can ask the questions for me, if you prefer? They'll be the same ones." He motioned for Leon to sit down in the chair opposite Merlin, while he himself leaned against the table, right next to Merlin. Arthur was practically breathing on him.

For a moment Merlin swayed close to Arthur, overcome by the urge to reach out with his magic and just _touch_. Then Arthur smirked, and Merlin realized he would rather freeze time and run away than be anywhere near Arthur. 

The only problem with that was that Arthur and Leon would probably notice if Merlin disappeared from in front of their eyes. Better: he could create an elaborate illusion, faking his own death. And they would cart his body out and -- burn it probably, and no matter how good an illusion it was Merlin didn't think he'd like being burned at the stake. Hadn't they done that back in Salem? Merlin shuddered. Some of the more extreme members of the Anti-Sorcery League certainly lobbied for public witch burnings.

Better to just wait it out.

"... so you see, I have a hard time believing you have nothing to do with this," Arthur finished.

Merlin wracked his brain for a good answer, and found he didn't care enough to even pretend to have been paying attention. "I have a question for you: Why is it you did _nothing_ when Will Spencer was murdered? He was killed by magic too. You know, by Morgana Le Fay. Maybe you've heard of her?"

The color drained from Arthur's face, and Merlin noticed that Leon flinched. He'd touched a nerve, apparently. 

"Oh yeah, isn't she your sister? Classy dame, that Morgana. I heard she's in town now. Maybe _she_ had something to do with de Bois's death. Have you considered that?"

Merlin didn't even see the punch coming; from one moment to the next, he was knocked to the floor and his ears were ringing. 

"Shut your trap! She wouldn't do that to Tristan! One more word about her out of you and I'll--" Arthur hauled Merlin to his feet until they were face to face.

"You'll what? Have Leon arrest me? Get me hanged for a crime I didn't commit? I thought you were trying to clean up the city, Mr. Pendragon, not join in the corruption."

That was enough to get Arthur to loosen his hold; Merlin shoved him off and quickly moved to the door before either Arthur or Leon could stop him. "By the way, might want to do something against that halitosis."

Arthur sputtered and his face turned red. "You can't--" 

Whatever else he said got drowned out by the door slamming shut behind Merlin. A touch of magic kept anybody from bothering him in the halls -- just enough of a "stay away" aura that nobody paid much attention to him but not enough to become obvious should anybody ask if they'd seen him.

It was a little bit sad, though, that Merlin could navigate through the police station as well as he did. He'd definitely spent too much time in there. Courtesy of all the damn mobsters. Morgause Grayson especially -- if Arthur Pendragon could lock her up, Merlin would personally thank him.

"Merlin!"

Gwen's voice startled him out of his thoughts. She ran up to him and embraced him. "Oh gosh, I was so worried about you. Alice from down the street said she'd seen you get pinched..."

"Alice was exaggerating. I didn't get arrested, I was just asked to come in for questioning. Two very different things." Merlin was an old hand at being asked to come in for questioning, after all. He was practically friends with the receptionist. He glanced over and waved at her -- she didn't notice, both because his spell was still in place and because there was some rough looking man talking to her. 

"Yes, on paper, but I know how the cops are out to get you..." She stopped suddenly and looked around, as if only just realizing that she was in the reception hall of a police station. "Um, not that I think the cops are corrupt or anything. I mean. It's just that--"

Several of the officers stared at her. Gwen squeaked and pulled her trench coat tighter around her. "Let's get out of here."

Something in the room was setting off Merlin's magic. He couldn't place it, just a faint buzz under his skin. It reminded him a bit of Morgana, but far more pleasant than her abrupt way of pulling him close. More of an invitation, really. He took a step towards the reception desk, then forcibly stopped himself.

Merlin shook his head to clear his mind. "Good idea. We need to leave before--"

"Before I catch up to you?" 

Of course. 

Merlin sighed and turned around, hoping to use his body to block Gwen from Arthur's view. Last thing he wanted was for her to get pulled into his troubles. "Listen, you have nothing on me, so I'm not going to stay. If you've got a problem with that, you'll just have to bend all those rules you keep saying you uphold."

Arthur, startled or insulted or both, gave him no response -- his eyes widened and his mouth parted slightly, drawing Merlin's attention to his lips. But the slack-jawed expression didn’t quit and, unnerved, Merlin followed Arthur's line of sight and realized that Arthur was staring at Gwen. 

"Guinevere? Why are you... why are you here?" Arthur's voice stuttered, a change from how he usually sounded when interrogating Merlin.

Gwen, of course, blushed. "Oh! Arthur. Um. Wow. I didn't expect to see you here. Well. I knew you were a lawyer, you're in the paper all the time, so it makes more sense for you to be here than me. But it's a coincidence, right? Us running into each other. In the police station. That is--"

Merlin stepped on her foot.

And though she yelped loudly, Merlin knew she would thank him for it later. Arthur narrowed his eyes at Merlin. "That's no way to treat a lady."

"Gwen can take care of herself. And how do you two know each other anyway?" Merlin hissed, glancing around to check how much attention they were attracting. He still couldn't pinpoint the faint magical buzz, and it was taking a lot of effort to not start reaching out.

Gwen noticed and became self-conscious, pulling her trench coat close again. Arthur did his own scan of the room. His eyes narrowed and his lips curled down for just a brief moment before he pulled on a professional face again.

"Right. Let's go somewhere a bit more private." Arthur motioned at them to follow him to a small room down a corridor. Curious and against his better judgment, Merlin went along. The further they got away from the reception desk, the less pronounced the faint buzz under Merlin's skin was. At least that was one less distraction.

Gwen sat down in one of the chairs. After several aborted starts--with both Merlin and Arthur watching her intently -- she said, very quietly, "Merlin, you remember, I used to be friends with Morgana."

Right. A little part of him still blamed Gwen for what had happened, for being the person to introduce Morgana to their investigation agency--but no. Gwen had been as betrayed as Merlin had. And if she'd been friends with Morgana, no doubt she would have run into Arthur Pendragon every so often.

Arthur took a seat next to Gwen and placed his arm close to hers on the table. "A more important question, Guinevere, is what you're doing with Emrys. You know he's a suspected magic user, right?" 

"Suspected! You have no proof of that!" And if he said there was proof, Merlin would know he was lying.

"What? That can't be right, Arthur!" To her credit, Gwen's voice didn't waver in the slightest. She was a fair hand at lying herself, though nobody would ever suspect it of her. "I work with him." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card. "Smith & Emrys, Private Investigators."

Arthur stared at the card, utter shock clearly written across his face. "You're-- you're a dick?"

Merlin leaned against the door and crossed his arms. "Got a problem with private eyes? We're doing the work the government doesn't."

"Oh yes, of course. You take on all the important cases of lost puppies and cheating wives." Arthur rolled his eyes as he said it.

"Those are important cases! The people who come to us have nobody else to turn to!" Merlin countered, though he felt his ears heating in embarrassment. Bad enough that he sometimes questioned the value of his work himself; he definitely didn't need Pendragon throwing it at him too.

"Right, come back when you know how to handle a real case, like Chief de Bois's murder."

"Oh, that's a great idea!" Gwen said, and clapped her hands together. "Of course we'll help you with your investigation, Arthur!" 

"What?" Merlin was slightly mollified that Arthur seemed as outraged by the suggestion as Merlin was -- and then got a bit angry, thinking about how that meant Arthur didn't think their help was worth anything.

Gwen ignored him and smiled at Arthur. "We charge five dollars per day, plus whatever expenses we incur over the course of the investigation. That means if we need to order dinner or bribe a source as part of the investigation, it will be added to your bill."

That was actually slightly higher than they charged their regular customers -- who probably didn't make more than twenty dollars in a week -- but the government could certainly afford it. Heck, Arthur Pendragon could afford it.

"Don't be ridiculous, I can't hire you!" Arthur's gaze flitted between Gwen and Merlin, and Merlin wondered how Arthur ever won any court cases if he wore his expressions so openly. 

But it probably would be beneficial to investigate the case if it meant keeping himself out of jail. Merlin shrugged at Arthur. "If you don't want to find the murderer, that's fine by me. Your current staff won't do it, that's for sure."

"How do you know that? They're all very competent men." 

And there it was, that hot-headed look that Merlin was so familiar with from all the failed court proceedings. It was a bit silly how easily he'd manipulated Arthur.

"Yes, and Sergeant Aredian left me sitting alone the moment some hotshot politician called. And he's trying to frame me for the entire murder, which I did not do!" 

"Right. I can confirm that. He was with me that night," Gwen said. Bless her, really, though Merlin wasn't sure he was comfortable with Gwen lying to save his skin.

Arthur's eyebrows drew together in doubt. "What? Are you sure?"

"Yes! My brother just gave me a radio -- can you believe it, my own radio!--and we listened to a few broadcasts. Took us a while to figure out how it worked though, didn't it."

That much was true; they had certainly met up recently because of Gwen's new radio, and they had fumbled around trying to find a broadcast. Camelot had three official radio stations and one illicit one that could only be accessed by magic users. Gwen had insisted he try it out, just to see what it was like.

Merlin was grateful to have at least one friend he could count on.

"But Aredian said there were eye witness reports --"

"Witnesses can be wrong, Arthur. What exactly did they supposedly see?" Gwen kept her tone gentle and even went so far as to put her hand on Arthur's arm. A second later she pulled it back again, as if realizing how inappropriate the touch was.

"I believe the exact words were 'a tall youth with dark hair and blue eyes.' Don't know about you, but I can't really see a person's eye color from a distance, especially not during a fire fight. Not to mention that I'm not exactly a 'youth'," Merlin said. He could already see Arthur try to protest, so he added, "I'm older than both of you." 

He knew full well that he didn't look his age -- Will always said that he had a baby-face. Even those carnival age guessers tended to get his age wrong, though that might also be because Merlin liked to mess with their age-guessing spells.

Arthur clenched his fist. "There's other evidence. Which I won't be discussing with you until we've arrested you and you've got yourself a lawyer. But you're right that you're free to go, for now."

Merlin and Gwen shared a glance. In the very least, nobody could ever say that Arthur Pendragon didn't follow the law to the letter. It was obvious how much it was paining him to let Merlin go now.

Gwen reached out again, and this time her hand stayed on Arthur's arm. "Arthur, please. Let us help you. It will clear Merlin, and you'll find the man who really did kill your uncle."

"No. This is official police matter, and no matter how good you may be, Guinevere, I certainly can't involve a suspect," Arthur's eyes slid over to Merlin, "in the investigation. I trust my force, I trust my people. When I do have you arrested, Mr. Emrys, it will be with hard evidence."

Arthur tilted his head at Guinevere, slowly pulled his arm away from her, and then made to leave the room at a clipped pace, as if being in their very presence were taxing. 

The two of them made their way out of the police station in silence, and it wasn't until they were standing outside that Gwen said, "I don't like this."

Merlin sighed. "I don't either. Especially about what Arthur said, that they had more evidence on me. Circumstantial or not, I'd feel better if we could direct them to the proper culprit."

"So you want to investigate this?"

"You don't have to. You could take on a paying case while I look into it."

Gwen shook her head. "Merlin, we're partners. I'm not going to leave you in a jam all by yourself. Of course I'm going to help."

Out of all the people he'd ever met, Merlin couldn't help but think that Gwen was the best thing that had ever happened to him. No matter their differences, she was always there for him. He reached out and squeezed her shoulder, and she smiled back at him.

"So, where do we start?"

"I suppose we could... we could talk to Elyan."

Merlin's eyebrows shot up. If there was ever a sign of dedication from Gwen, calling on her brother's services was definitely one of them.

* * *

Camelot Tribune -– Society – Sunday, May 17, 1925

**Morgana le Fay Revealed as Pendragon love-child and Secret Sorceress**

In a shocking display at Saturday night’s Anti-Sorcery League fundraising event, Morgana le Fay came out as not only a supporter of magic, but a sorceress herself. 

At the event, hosted at the Pendragon Manor, Morgana blew through security with magic and decried the very cause of the Anti-Sorcery League. "Uther Pendragon is a hypocrite beyond reason!" she said. "When my father was dying, he refused to turn to magic. Yet when it was his own flesh and blood, he called on the finest sorcerers he knew.

Her cryptic comment soon turned into the scandal of the year as le Fay revealed that Uther Pendragon is her father.

"When I was dying -- when his _daughter_ was dying -- he spared no expense," le Fay declared to the room.

The news certainly explains why Uther Pendragon was so quick to take Morgana in after she was left orphaned nearly ten years ago to the day.

Judge Gorlois le Fay and his wife Viviane le Fay passed away due to influenza, on May 16 and May 18, 1915. At the time, it was speculated that he had caught the disease while trying to help the druid slums of the city. 

While some believe he could have been saved had magic not been banned, Uther Pendragon (then District Attorney) insisted that it was the very existence of magic that had cost Judge le Fay his life. The two men were close, and Uther Pendragon graciously took Morgana le Fay into his care.

Since then, Morgana has rarely missed any high society party. She was one of the main attractions at the annual Anti-Sorcery League fundraisers, both as a gracious hostess and as a leader in fashion. 

As somebody in the public eye, she is constantly at the center of a storm of rumors. In an interview last year, she commented, "I'd be more worried if there weren't rumors! That would mean I was no longer of interest to the public."

And what rumors they were! Some believed she was sleeping with Uther Pendragon, others that she and Arthur Pendragon would soon cement what appeared to be a long, public wooing. Once or twice she was seen with Leon Kent, detective and friend to Arthur Pendragon.

Uther Pendragon publically denied her accusations and cast her out of his home, though not before Morgana vowed revenge. We're on the edge of our seats, waiting to see how this will end.

* * *

The relationship between Elyan and Gwen was a strange one, to say the least. Merlin was never sure if they were on good terms or not, because despite how friendly they acted in front of people, Gwen never talked about Elyan and she never seemed to call him outside of business related matters.

This was a business matter.

The window of Elyan’s store had "Smith General" painted on it in faded dark green lettering, a name that had been there since Gwen's father had run the place. The door was the same shade of green, withan "open" sign hanging crookedly on its window. 

They arrived with a half hour to spare before closing and a bell rang as they stepped inside. The store was empty save Elyan, sitting behind the counter, though Merlin sent out his magic to double-check, just to be on the safe side. They really didn't want any eavesdroppers for this conversation.

Elyan waved to them. "What can I do for you two?"

Merlin watched Gwen pull a paper out of her coat pocket--ah, the article about Chief de Bois's murder. She handed it to Elyan and asked, "Have you heard anything about this? About who might have been involved."

Elyan skimmed the article quickly. "Can't say that I have. A high profile killing like that isn't going to get anybody clambering to take credit, but nobody claims to have seen anything either. Probably too afraid of whatever gang it was--the Sisters or the South Siders, for sure--and I don't blame 'em."

If the two mobs were being run with any sort of proper leadership, the killing wouldn't have happened in the first place, Merlin thought darkly. Under Nimueh, the gangs had managed to keep out of public eye for the most part. The average citizen could feel safe enough that they wouldn't be caught in a gang crossfire. The new gangs seemed to think violence alone could get them what they wanted.

Gwen looked disappointed. "Really? No leads at all? What about... what about the weapons? Did you hear of anybody buying the kind that were used?"

"What kind were used, Gwen?" Elyan asked, an exasperated tone to his voice. Merlin was beginning to suspect they were wearing out their welcome, and anyway Elyan was right. They had less than nothing to go on.

"Come on, Gwen, I think we need to try other angles. Maybe we can track down that supposed eye witness, or..." Merlin trailed off when the front bell rang. All three of them turned to stare at the door where a handsome man was walking in. 

He noticed the three of them,stopping short and grinning at them. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"

Gwen shook her head. "No, never mind. I'll leave you to your work." She rushed out the door; Merlin took the time to thank Elyan before he followed her. As he walked past the newcomer, he felt a slight tug at his magic, sort of reminiscent of...

"Hurry up!" Gwen shouted. Merlin pulled all his magic inward and caught up to her.

* * *

Gwen and Merlin parted ways a few hours later, discouraged by their lack of progress. If Merlin couldn’t still feel Aredian breathing down his neck, he would have said to forget the investigation. Right now, he was looking forward to flopping into bed and reading a novel.

His luck from the day held out though, and when he took the stairs up to his apartment, he found Morgana waiting for him, looking as beautiful as ever. She wore a light coat with fur accents, and her hair was pinned under a cloche hat. She waved a manicured hand at him when she saw him, but didn't make to move from her spot. It took Merlin a second to realize why: she was trying to break the spell on his door's lock.

When he'd first moved, he'd used just the regular key to keep his apartment locked, but after one too many times of people breaking in -- via magic or traditional lockpicking -- he'd decided it was safer to use his magic. Of course, that didn't stop very powerful sorcerers from finding a workaround, but in that eventuality Merlin could be assured that they would never be able to put the spell back as they'd found it.

"You'll never break it," he said, and he somehow wasn't surprised when she just smirked at him.

"I think I did admirably. Want to check?"

Merlin did, ghosting his magic over the lock and grimacing at what he found. "That's nigh unrecognizable. It's practically broadcasting that somebody tampered with the spell."

She didn't seem to be bothered though, continuing to smile at him. "I thought I'd surprise you. We haven't seen each other in so long." 

Merlin sidestepped her and pushed his door open, making a note to fix the magical mess she'd left behind. He tried to slam the door shut before she could follow, but it was a futile effort. "Don't, Morgana."

She ignored him. "Really, Merlin, I've never understood why you don't move somewhere nicer. This place seems even more drab than the last time I was here." 

Morgana hung her coat on the coat rack by the door, revealing the soft beige dress with a dark green sash around the hips. It gave her a much straighter silhouette than anything Gwen ever wore, and already Merlin found his thoughts scattering the wrong direction.

He pulled himself back to the conversation. "You know why. I can't afford a nicer apartment."

"You could if you just used your magic." Morgana stepped into his personal space, let her own magic nudge at his, and with that, Merlin could feel his resolve crumbling.

They clicked, on the basest level. Their magic was in tune in such a way that just a light brush could send pleasure racing down Merlin's spine. Morgana herself didn't seem unaffected; she moaned loudly even before Merlin pulled her into a kiss.

"We shouldn't," Merlin whispered against her ear, even as his hands were pushing her skirt up. She was undoing his fly with her magic, a messy spell that lacked finesse and spilled over onto his skin.

"Why not? It feels good." Morgana accentuated the statement by pulling out his half-hard cock.

He did try to pull back then, the most nominal of efforts, because there were so many reasons why doing this with Morgana was a bad idea. "You killed Will."

"And then you almost killed me. We're even."

No, they weren't even, not by a long-shot, but Merlin kissed her again, entwined her tongue with his and decided that kicking her out now wouldn't make a difference anyway.

"Did you buy a proper bed?" Morgana asked between moans, and Merlin growled and shoved her in the direction of his sofa bed.

"We really should do this at my place sometime. Would be more comfortable."

Merlin pulled back and glared. "If you don't want to do this, please, you know where the door is."

There was no risk of her leaving though. Her hands were already pushing him into the sofa bed, and she climbed on top to straddle his hips. He pulled her down for another kiss, their tongues sparring for dominance, a strange parallel of their magic trying to drown the other out.

"Oh, Merlin, what you do to me..."

Merlin could only echo the sentiment. Morgana was one of the people he disliked most in the world, and he was too weak to deny the intense, fleeting pleasure she provided.

* * *

Camelot Tribune -- Local -- Sunday, May 17, 1925

**Magic related death at Lake Avalon**

The body of William Spencer, age 28, was discovered floating near the shore of Lake Avalon. Police have released a statement saying that the death was from unnatural causes, most likely by a spell inflicted on Spencer before he ultimately drowned. There are currently no suspects. 

* * *

"Are you staying?" Merlin asked, not sure what he wanted her answer to be. His fingers traced her breasts idly, not worried about arousing her, just enjoying the softness of her skin.

"Wish I could. I have errands to run in the morning."

Errands. Right. Merlin forced himself to pull away from her. "I don't suppose those errands have anything to do with your uncle's murder?"

"It's cute that you think I'd tell you anything."

"It's cute that you think I expected a straight answer out of you."

Morgana laid an arm across his chest, a strange mockery of a lover's gesture, and Merlin couldn't help the sudden pang in his chest. What could the two of them have been, had their situations been just slightly different?

"This was fun though. We should see each other more often."

More to himself than to her, Merlin whispered, "I'd rather not." If she heard, she ignored him.

Morgana stayed in his arms for a few moments longer before she got up, grumbling about the cold, and began groping for her clothes. No longer pinned up, her hair framed her face, a sharp contrast to her pale skin. He watched her dress, all of her beautiful skin slowly disappearing under the fabric.

She hovered briefly by the hallway. "Good night, darling. Maybe we'll see each other again while I'm in town."

Almost as soon as she was out the door, Merlin felt the first shot of regret. He very pointedly closed his eyes and burrowed under the sheets, because Morgana might be stealing his dignity one fuck at a time, but he sure as hell wasn't going to let her steal his sleep.

* * *

Merlin did not tell Gwen about Morgana's visit. All it would do was get her upset; he really didn't need a fight with her right now. He didn't think he could face her either, so he suggested they do their own separate investigations.

He couldn't take her to see this particular informant anyway.

Taking a cab was too risky, so he walked part of the way until he could hop on a streetcar to take him to the rundown part of town. He could tell who else on the streetcar was going in the same direction as him; the clothes they wore were shabby and there was a deep-set tiredness in their eyes. Merlin hated that Prohibition had become a reason to discriminate against any and all magic users. Even those who really did abide by the law got shunned by the rest of society. "Oh, it's the dirty druids who use magic and endanger our cities," they said. Morgause and her illegal magic distribution business weren't doing them any favors either, even if her father had been the late Judge Grayson, close friend to Uther Pendragon.

The druids tried to get by, of course. There were little potion shops hidden away in corners of their streets, veiled by magic to reveal themselves only to those with power. It had startled Merlin the first time, when Gwen clearly hadn't seen the same things he had. 

The problem was that nobody bought magic charms openly these days, and the police had regular raids down there. Morgause Grayson ran most of the black market magical trade, and she made it a living hell for any competition. There was only so much magic could do to improve their quality of life; it couldn't put food on the table, that was for sure. (Merlin had tried it once, when he'd been out late staking out a target. The result had made him vomit and lose the trail in the process.)

Sometime on the ride, he felt that strange buzz again. Merlin looked around, hoping to figure out what was causing his magic to tingle like that, but with all the magic users on the train it was near useless. Maybe it was just an effect of all the magic in close proximity. It did seem to completely disappear at one of the stops where the majority of the passengers got off.

He got off at the second-to-last stop, along with the few handful of people who had remained on the train. The stop was in disrepair, a result of the city not caring for the dregs of society. Besides, all of the city's funding went into the ridiculous anti-sorcery campaign, and all the arrests for petty possession or "possible intent to use." They'd stopped reporting most of those crimes; hardly even news anymore, and who cared about a few druids, right?

A blonde boy tugged on Merlin's coat. "Emrys," he said, eyes wide, "Kilgarrah is expecting you."

Not the weirdest thing that had ever happened to Merlin, nor the creepiest. Merlin shrugged and followed the boy. They went through several back alleys and seemed to make random loops through the streets. Merlin felt lost until he realized that the path they were walking was a rune, and the magic was guiding them to their destination. It was a small, unobtrusive house that by all reasoning was only a block away from where they'd started, yet Merlin knew that without following the rune it would have been impossible to reach it.

Looked like Kilgarrah had moved shop again. 

Merlin pushed through the door and was greeted by the strong scent of some sort of flowery incense. Smoke was wafting out of one corner of the room, where the mysterious Kilgarrah sat.

He was an old man, with magic wafting off of him in waves so strong Merlin always wondered how nobody else seemed to notice. Everybody just assumed that Kilgarrah was a harmless old fortune-teller, with a mild gift for scrying. 

"Is all the secrecy necessary?" Merlin asked, sitting down on the chair across from Kilgarrah. 

Unlike other fortune tellers, Kilgarrah didn't bother with a crystal ball or tarot cards. He just _saw_. It was extremely unnerving to be on the receiving end of that gold-eyed stare, as if Kilgarrah could see through a person's soul. Who knew, maybe he could.

"If not for secrecy, I would not be here," Kilgarrah responded with a mild smile. "And then whom would you ask all of your endless questions?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "I don't even know why I bother sometimes. You never answer the questions I ask."

"Because they are never the right ones. But ask anyway." Kilgarrah chuckled.

If the advice and premonitions Kilgarrah gave weren't so good, Merlin would have stopped bothering to visit him. But so far, Kilgarrah hadn't truly led him astray. And he knew more about Merlin's magic than anybody else. Kilgarrah's help had been indispensible when Merlin was first coming to terms with his gift, with his curse. So Merlin could forgive all the cryptic talk. 

"I'm sure you've heard about Tristan de Bois's murder by now. I'm under investigation for it, and I'd really rather not have Arthur Pendragon breathing down my neck again. So if you could point me in the right direction..."

"Arthur Pendragon, you say? I'd wondered what he was up to."

"Right." Like Merlin believed for one second that Kilgarrah didn't know everything about everyone. "The important part is me being under investigation. Do you think I should--"

"What is Arthur's opinion on this?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Arthur thinks I did it. Just like all the law enforcement officers. So if I could get a lead to disprove that theory--"

Kilgarrah stared at Merlin, truly stared at him, to the point that Merlin begans squirming in his seat. Merlin could feel the tendrils of magic curling in the room, poking at the corners of reality. He instinctively shrunk back a bit, which seemed to jostle Kilgarrah out of his trance.

"No. The murder is unimportant. Much larger things are at stake here. You need to work with Arthur to stop the downfall of this city."

"Downfall of the city? Aren't you getting a bit dramatic? And anyway, there's no way that Arthur would ever work with a suspected magic user. He doesn't trust me at all."

Kilgarrah snorted. "Because, of course, you are a paragon of honesty."

Merlin narrowed his eyes. "Shut yer trap. Anyway, if he's so sure I consort with the gangs, let him prove it."

The worst of it was that, had Arthur been around to prosecute Merlin at the start of Prohibition, Merlin would have been caught red-handed. Good thing Merlin had received the shock he needed to get his head in the game before Arthur had gained any power in the District Attorney's office.

Kilgarrah made a shooing motion. "You need to gain his trust. Without it, you will never stop the dark magic that is brewing. And if you don't like my advice, you can always try using that lovely crystal they have in the vaults."

It took Merlin a second to realize what Kilgarrah was talking about -- the Crystal of Neahtid, the one he and Will had recovered and placed back in the vaults before it could cause too much damage. Merlin had made the mistake of looking at it for just a brief second, and what he'd seen had almost driven him mad. What it had done to Morgana was even worse.

Merlin would rather spend a week puzzling out Kilgarrah's advice than ever taking another glance at it. 

All the talk of magic was reminding him though. "Do you know of anything that could cause a... well, a magical buzz? Like when you place your hand over a radio?"

Kilgarrah tilted his head. "A few things. Why do you ask?"

"It's just, I've been feeling it all over the place these past two days."

There was a brief pause while Kilgarrah filled the pipe lying on the table. He lit it and took a deep puff, blowing sweet-smelling smoke out in rings. "Did it happen when you were near Arthur?"

Merlin thought it over, then shook his head. "No. It was on the train earlier too, and I think I would have noticed if Arthur had been there."

Kilgarrah made a strange noise, blew more smoke at Merlin. "Then it would seem it's not just Arthur you should keep an eye out for. Interesting, interesting. This coin might have three sides."

More cryptic messages. Short of using magic, no coin had three sides. "Are you going to tell me anything helpful?"

"It was a good question." Kilgarrah smiled at him, and somehow those teeth, old and yellow though they were, appeared particularly sharp. "Trust has always been an issue for you, Emrys. I believe that, for once, you will need to trust people. Particularly these two."

This really wasn't getting anywhere. Merlin stood up. "Okay, I got it. Help Arthur solve the crime, save the city, and learn to trust." 

He made to pay Kilgarrah, but, as always, he was refused. "I don't need your money, Emrys. Especially since I don't believe you intend to follow my advice."

Merlin shrugged. He was fine with not paying, since it meant there'd be more for him and Gwen. But despite how unhelpful Kilgarrah seemed, Merlin always felt like he should be doing more for the man. He'd even tried throwing business his way, but nobody else had ever been able to find the shop. He took it to mean that Kilgarrah didn't want their business.

He murmured a brief thanks and then stepped through the door. It lead out to a completely different part of town than where he'd come in. He thought he might recognize some of the buildings, but he'd probably need to rely on magic to keep from getting lost. Sometimes he wondered if Kilgarrah _wanted_ him revealed to the world.

* * *

Of course, he'd barely made it to the office--Gwen was already there, he waved at her through the window--when Leon approached him. Merlin groaned. "Please, Detective, I already came in for questioning yesterday. Give me a day's rest."

But instead of a similar quip, Leon just scowled at him. "I can't believe you, Emrys. All this time... You're under arrest for the murder of Tristan de Bois." 

He held out a pair of handcuffs; Merlin took them and snapped them around his wrists, arms in front. He couldn’t help but think of the irony of Kilgarrah's words, telling him that the murder was inconsequential, which made him chuckle.

"You think this is funny?" Leon demanded. "The evidence we have on you... I always believed you were a good person, but I guess it was all just a con."

"What evidence is that, then?" Merlin asked as Leon led him to the patrol car. "Because I honestly have no idea what you're talking about."

Leon shoved him inside and refused to say anything else, like he was taking the entire matter personally. Merlin sighed and absently picked at the handcuff lock with his magic, just wiggling it around until it would spring free with just a thought. He didn't think it would come to that though; mostly he was trying to pass the time.

The police precinct looked the same as it had the previous day, although without a cloaking spell it seemed like everybody was staring at him as he was being led to the holding cells. Leon shoved him inside, removed the handcuffs, and then locked the cell door behind him.

"I hope they lock you up for a long time," Leon said, glaring at Merlin through the iron bars. 

Merlin met his glare, schooling his expression into neutrality. "I didn't do this, Leon. Whatever evidence you might have, _I didn't do this_."

"Tell it to Sweeny," Leon mumbled, and with that he was gone.

Great. Meriln slumped back against the wall, then slid down to the hard cot. Breaking out would be easy enough, but he didn't particularly want to be on the lam. He'd take his chances in the court. Merlin frowned. Provided he got a chance to call Gwen. Or a lawyer. He tried to remember the name of the lawyer who would help him out back in the day, but he was drawing a blank.

"Fuck."

* * *

So there he was again, in the questioning room with Aredian sitting across the table from him. The urge to ram the table against Aredian was almost unbearable this time, with the way Aredian sneered at him.

"Do you know what we found, when we went to search your apartment today?"

"No, I don't."

"The murder weapon, with your fingerprints all over it."

Merlin drew in a sharp breath. "That's-- that's impossible."

"It really isn't." Aredian placed a Colt semi-automatic in front of him. "We matched the bullet types. Your business card was found at the scene. A witness places you there." Merlin hadn't thought it possible, but Aredian's sneer turned even more self-satisfied. "You are not getting out of this one, Balinson."

Fuck. Merlin wracked his brain, tried to think of how his fingerprints could have ended up on a gun, how that gun could have even ended up in his apartment. There was no way the police could have planted it, not without some sort of magic to get past his door, and--

Oh.

Merlin clenched his fist and forced himself to take a deep breath. "You know I'm being framed, right?"

"You aren't the first criminal trying to weasel himself out of a conviction, let me tell you that."

"I'm not saying another word, since you're convinced I'm guilty anyway. I want a lawyer."

Aredian's smirk didn't waver. "Feel free to contact one. You're spending the night here in lock-up though."

So, no, he wasn't allowed to make a telephone call or otherwise get in touch with counsel. Merlin didn't know how he was going to let Gwen know what happened either. He just hoped she wouldn't get pulled into this fiasco as an accomplice or anything.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

It was actually a relief when they informed Merlin that he had a visitor. Merlin had been trying to figure out how to get word to Gwen, but there she was, sitting in front of him.

"How did you even know where I was?" Merlin asked.

"You waved to me, remember? I saw Leon drag you away. They wouldn't let me visit yesterday, but there's only so many rights they can deny people in lock-up." Gwen smiled. "Besides, Leon isn't as mean and tough as he likes to pretend."

Any other officer might have denied Gwen the right to visit him, but Leon was a decent sort of fellow, even if he didn't trust Merlin at the moment. 

"So," Gwen said, staring at him from across the visitor's table.

"So," Merlin responded.

Gwen's lips were drawn tight, and the slight crinkle in her brow belied her worry. "I didn't think the police would stoop so low as to fabricate evidence against you." She reached across the table and clasped his hand. "I'll help get you out. Is there anybody you want me to contact?"

Her hand was a soothing warmth against his skin. Though she lacked magic of her own, Merlin always felt a little safer with her around. 

Even if he knew that his next words would erase all of her good will towards him.

"It was Morgana."

"What?"

"Morgana. She's the one who planted the evidence in my apartment."

As suspected, Gwen withdrew her hand. "How did she do that? Don't you..." she waved her hand ambiguously, to signify all the things that couldn't be said in the police station.

Merlin sighed and slumped forward, resting his chin on his hand. "I do. She'd tampered with it, but she made it seem like she was trying to open it. Not that she'd just closed it. And then... well."

Confusion flittered over Gwen's features for a brief moment, until her eyes widened in comprehension. "You slept with her," she hissed.

"Yes."

"Despite everything." Her words were quiet, but the clipped tone conveyed her disapproval well enough. 

Merlin averted his eyes. "I couldn't help it."

"So you keep saying. I suppose the Pendragons have a point -- magic really does do a lot of harm."

"That's not right! You don't understand, it's just..."

Gwen raised her palm to him. "I'm not sure it's safe to be your friend. Maybe it would be better if I just left you here to handle things on your own."

"I'd appreciate if you could get me a lawyer instead."

She stood up and turned her back to him, and a sharp bitterness lodged itself in Merlin's chest. She could leave him, could go and live her life as usual, find a new partner and take on new cases and never think of him again, and it really would be just exactly what Merlin deserved.

But she looked over her shoulder at him, and though her expression was still set in anger, she said, "I'll find a way to help you. But you really, really need to start thinking about where your priorities lie."

* * *

The second visitor of the day was more of a surprise.

Cenred King, waltzing through the doors, looking damned pleased with himself. The officers left the room when he motioned, and it was just the two of them together.

"Don't bother," Merlin said. Cenred took a seat across from him anyway.

"My sources tell me you're in a bit of a bind, Mr. Emrys." Cenred pulled a file out of his briefcase and set it in front of Merlin. "A lot of evidence piling up against you."

"Yes, that does tend to happen when people enchant my fingerprints onto weapons and plant them in my apartment." Merlin let his eyes briefly wander over to the files, but he didn't want to show too much interest. The picture of the murder weapon was most prominent: just a small revolver, but even a small gun could fire a bullet -- magical or not -- that would penetrate human flesh.

"Mr. Emrys, that is exactly what Morgause Grayson has been suffering through all these years. Needlessly harassed by the police, treated like a common criminal."

"This act of yours is really not working, Cenred."

Cenred shrugged and leaned back in his chair. "Well, it's simple. Morgause is willing to help make these charges go away. On one condition."

Merlin snorted. He knew Morgause and her methods well enough to doubt every honeyed word dripping from her lawyer's mouth. "Let me guess, she wants me to do something illegal for her."

"She just wants to discuss a few things with you. She feels there is mutual benefit to the two of you working in tandem."

"No."

It was subtle, but Merlin could see that Cenred was slowly losing his good mood. "No?"

"I'm not going to help Morgause. I'll find my own way out of this."

"Well, it's your death sentence," Cenred said. "Remember that we _did_ offer to help you."

"You're also the ones that got me into this predicament in the first place. Don't think I can't see right through you. No matter what Morgause does, I'll never help her."

Cenred stood, put on his hat, and picked up his briefcase. "I'd wager that in a few days, you'll be changing your tune."

Merlin watched him leave and tried to figure out what reasons Morgause could have for wanting him in her debt. They hadn't really been in contact recently, and short of his liaisons with Morgana, he had no connection with her anymore. 

Kilgarrah's warning rang clear in his mind. _There are much larger things at stake here. You need to work with Arthur to stop the downfall of this city_

Or maybe Morgause just didn't like that Merlin acted outside of her jurisdiction.

Still, it was worrying.

* * *

Camelot Tribune

**Cop Killers found not-guilty**

Camelot, August 14 1926 -- Mike Dagr and Owen Ebor were found not guilty of first degree murder of Officers Oswald Borne and Ethan Hesse, who were slain a year ago when on patrol in the Mercia neighborhood. 

"It's a terrible day in our city when known murderers can run free. Does the jury truly believe they have done our city a service?" said Linda Hesse, Ethan Hesse’s widow.

The trial, begun on May 23, has been running for more than a year, and has been plagued by problems for the prosecution. Jury selection took an unprecedented three months, and then multiple witnesses recanted their statements.

Despite the evidence that Dagr and Ebor did indeed kill the two officers, defense attorney Cenred King argued they shot them in self-defense. Several witnesses admit to having seen or heard the police officers in question detaining the two men on several occasions. According to King, this was borderline harassment, and his clients could not be held accountable for what was their natural reaction to such harassment.

Arthur Pendragon, the prosecuting attorney on this case, passionately decried the results. "This is an example of all that is corrupt in our city. Two men who have admitted to murdering officers of the law being allowed to go free makes me fear for the direction our country is going in. Soon enough, they will tell me it's all right for a man to murder his own brother, provided they had a disagreement first." 

* * *

The day just got more bizarre with the third visitor.

Arthur looked at him through the bars of the cell. "The guards told me that Cenred King came to see you. Already have a hot-shot magic lawyer defending you?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Did they also tell you that I turned him down? I can't abide people like him. Helping criminals get off scot-free."

"Criminals like yourself?" Arthur sneered. Everything about his body language spoke his dislike for Merlin; it was a familiar sight, one that Merlin had seen numerous times in the various trials and hearings accusing Merlin of one magical crime or other.

Normally it merely annoyed Merlin. Now, it was just another reminder of how most of the world was against him. He found himself scowling in response. "Did you come here to stare at me, or is there an actual reason for your visit?"

A strange emotion passed across Arthur's face, completely unrecognizable until Arthur spoke. "I came to… to release you."

Pain. Arthur was physically _pained_ to be letting Merlin out of the jail cell. On the one hand, it was the strangest turn of fate that Merlin had ever encountered in his fairly abnormal life; on the other, it was too good to be true. Merlin narrowed his eyes in suspicion. 

"What's the catch?"

Again, Arthur blanched. "No catch. I don't want to do this. But it's been brought to my attention that this investigation has been less than orthodox. When I put you away for good, I want there to be no doubt that everybody acted in accordance with the law." He spoke carefully, like he had to force every word out.

Merlin studied Arthur, taking in the set of his jaw and the way his hand clenched around the cell door bars. "So, you're actually _that_ honest a person?"

If possible, Arthur became even more tense. "If you don't want to leave, that's fine. It'll save me the trouble of yelling at Aredian for not getting a search warrant before busting into your house."

He probably wasn't being serious, but Merlin quickly stood up and walked over to the door. "That's okay. I'll be glad to get out of your hair."

It took another moment for Arthur to unlock the door, but once the door swung open Merlin rushed out, happy to no longer have to spend another moment in there. He really was far too acquainted with the inside of the city jail cell.

"Guinevere is waiting for you outside."

They stood awkwardly for a moment, until Merlin said "thanks" and made his way out. Arthur followed him; Merlin tried to ignore that fact and kept himself focused on Gwen. He wondered what kind of mood she'd be in, and how she had arranged for his release. 

She was waiting for him with a stern look on her face, so he shifted from one foot to the other in front of her until she cracked and embraced him. He quickly brought his arms up to return the hug. "I thought maybe you'd change your mind and decide to let me rot."

"Idiot. I don't want to have to change the sign on the door again," she said in a light tone.

When they stepped apart, she turned to face Arthur. "Thank you so much for this."

"No, thank you for bringing it to my attention. I should have realized there was something strange going on." Arthur looked somewhat ashamed, which was a big change from how he'd treated Merlin. 

Right. Arthur probably cared a lot more about Gwen's opinion than about Merlin's. It wasn't hard to see that there was just a bit of chemistry between the two of them. That left a bitter taste in Merlin's mouth, but he knew there was no good reason for him to be jealous. He was never going to sleep with Gwen -- he definitely wasn't interested in her beyond a friend -- and no matter how attractive Arthur was, his personality was pretty much a deal-breaker. (Not that Merlin was usually that picky; Morgana's personality was even worse, but Merlin thought that he could give himself some leeway where magic was concerned. It wasn't his fault his magic had a mind of its own.)

"The evidence still points to Merlin," Arthur said, which elicited a grimace out of Gwen and Merlin.

"I was framed," Merlin countered. "Pretty sure it was the Sisters. Cenred's visit kind of cemented that for me."

"Why would they need to do that?"

"Why does Morgana do _anything_?" Gwen muttered. Merlin didn't say that he thought it was more likely to be Morgause, because that would open up a lot more questions that he didn't feel like answering at the moment.

Arthur beat him to the punch anyway, with the outrageous statement of, "Morgana isn't with the Sisters."

Merlin and Gwen exchanged a glance and pointedly kept quiet. Finally Arthur growled out, "There's no evidence to that! And if I can't convict Merlin for lack of evidence, I think we should give Morgana the benefit of the doubt too!"

Again, Merlin bit his tongue. There were so many things he could say about that. The memory of Will's corpse surfacing from the lake, tinged in Morgana's tell-tale magical signature, was still hot in his mind. But how could he even explain that everybody's magic was unique when he officially didn't have any of his own?

"How about we work together and try to find the real killer? We can pool resources, and you can keep an eye on Merlin at the same time. Two birds with one stone?" Gwen suggested gently, neatly redirecting the conversation.

Merlin wanted to protest, but he remembered what Kilgarrah had told him. This was as good an opportunity to follow that advice. And Gwen was probably right about one thing -- access to Arthur's resources would be helpful during the investigation. Even if they ended up having to ditch Arthur at some later point, more information could only bring them closer to finding the real killer.

Arthur must have weighed the merits of the suggestion as well, because he said, "Fine. But I'm only paying 2.50 per day."

After a bit of haggling, they settled on a price, and Gwen stretched out her hand for Arthur to shake. "I look forward to working with you, Mr. Pendragon."

Oh hell. Merlin decided that if it made Gwen happy, he could put on his best face. 

Time to start a wonderful partnership with Arthur Pendragon.

* * *

They took Arthur back with them to the office, despite the late hour. Arthur stopped at the lettering on their door for a moment and traced "Smith" with his fingers, a small look of pride on his face. 

"You really are partners," Arthur mumbled.

Merlin shrugged. "Of course. What did you think, that I'd let Gwen be the receptionist while I worked? Most jobs take two people, and Gwen is more than capable."

"Though I did start as the receptionist," Gwen said with a laugh. "Will hired me -- that's Will Spencer, Merlin's former partner. Will insisted they needed to look more professional, or something like that."

The name didn't go unnoticed by Arthur. Merlin wished he hadn't brought Will's death to Arthur's attention, but there was no use. Morgana and Will were intrinsically tied to each other in Merlin's memories, and he could not avoid talking about one without the other. Will would haunt him for a while yet. Even flopping down onto the couch elicited memories of his late partner, of how he would have yelled at Merlin for ruining the upholstery with his flailing.

"Will tried his hardest at this job. He-- well, it doesn't matter. Smith and Emrys, at your service, Mr. Pendragon." 

Arthur paced around the room for a moment, discomfort seeping into every corner. Gwen tried to offer him a chair, but Arthur refused. Merlin rolled his eyes.

Finally, Gwen sat down at her desk and pulled out a notepad. "Please tell us everything you know about the case, Arthur. So we can be as efficient as possible."

"Yes, of course," Arthur said with a sigh. "The thing is -- Tristan is -- was -- my uncle. My father is livid about his death. I don't know how close they were. He drifted away from us after my mother's death, and I only just started getting to know him again through work.” He paused. “I'm a bit shaken up too. Not to mention that he was the Chief of Police. How do you think it reflects on us, if one of the strongest fighters against sorcery dies because of it?"

"Poorly?"

"Merlin!" Gwen shot him a glare.

Merlin shrugged and forced himself to smile sheepishly. "Right, sorry. Continue."

"As I was saying... Tristan was in Mercia, near the outskirts. You know that the gangs have a strong foothold there. So we suspect that either the Druids or the Sisters saw Tristan, and started the firefight as a way of moving up in the ranks. I'm sure the murderer is being congratulated at this very moment."

It took some effort, but Merlin managed to avoid laughing at Arthur's theory. "Really. You think the gangs are under such poor leadership that an underling would do anything without express orders?"

"No matter how powerful Morgause Grayson or Tauren O'Hare may be, they can't control everybody."

It took Merlin a moment to place the second name. He rarely dealt with the higher ups in the South Side Druids, and his few meetings with Tauren O'Hare had been unremarkable. The likelihood of the druids attempting to start anything with the police was minimal at best.

Merlin coughed and gathered his thoughts. "Right. Take Morgause Grayson. What are the consequences for acting without her permission? She's not exactly kind-hearted."

Arthur smirked at him. "How would you know? Have you met her? Do you know her _personally_?" 

Merlin nearly flinched at how close to the truth that was. He'd known Morgause, before she had taken control of the Sisters, and even back then they hadn't gotten along. And, unlike with Morgana, Morgause's magic left a foul taste on Merlin's tongue. Her magic felt _wrong_ , twisted and corrupted. 

He realized that Arthur was expecting him to say something, and terrible, incriminating words wanted to tumble out of his mouth.

"Boys! I think you're both forgetting one very important thing," Gwen interrupted, saving him from his own brashness.

"What's that?" Arthur asked, suitably distracted. Merlin breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

"What was Tristan doing in Mercia in the first place?"

The silence stretched out. 

And that, in a nutshell, was why Merlin needed Gwen to work with him. He got lost on all the details, and somehow she managed to see the important things.

Mercia was the heart of gang territory, and under normal circumstances, there was no reason for the chief of police to be there.

"Of course," Arthur mumbled. "There has to be a reason. Maybe... maybe if we know why... Who controls Mercia right now anyway?"

Merlin shrugged. "It's right at the edge between Sister and South Sider territory. If the shooting didn't change any lines, I'd say it's the Sisters, but you'd be more of an expert than me. Being a criminal prosecutor and all."

Gwen coughed loudly, and Arthur narrowed his eyes at Merlin. "So you say. I'm still not sure about you, Mr. Emrys."

"That's all right, I think you're a Mrs. Grundy anyway."

The crease between Arthur's brows deepened. "I don't know what that's supposed to mean, but if you aren't careful, I'll have you thrown into lockup again."

Somehow, Merlin couldn't take the statement seriously. He started laughing, and Gwen's giggles soon joined him. Arthur looked bewildered for a moment before he shook his head.

"Okay, you two clowns keep giggling, I'm going to head back and look at Tristan's files. We'll meet up again tomorrow." Arthur nodded at Gwen in farewell, rolled his eyes at Merlin, and then headed out the door.

"He really is a bit tight-laced, isn't he?" Gwen said once her giggles subsided. "But he's a good sort, when it comes down to it. He _did_ let you go once it was clear the evidence had been obtained illegally."

That much was true. Any other prosecutor would have kept Merlin anyway, and damn the legality of it. "I guess he might not be completely bad." Merlin sighed and walked over to the telephone. "Okay, time to get crackin'. Let's solve this caper."

"Gotcha, partner!"

* * *

They got a call from Arthur the next morning asking them to visit him at his office. Since neither Merlin nor Gwen had had much success digging up information, they figured there would be no harm in both of them going.

Arthur's office was in one of those fancy new metal buildings, a feat of architecture that somehow brought buildings to the heavens yet didn't rely on magic. Uther Pendragon had gotten a lot of votes from the construction companies by promising to contract more development in the state, and Camelot certainly benefited from it.

Unless you didn't like being ten floors up, supported only by metal. Gwen gripped Merlin's arm tighter as they rode up the elevator, and though she tried to keep her expression blank, Merlin could see that she was uncomfortable.

"We're perfectly safe, you know," he said. "They have a lot of safety measures in place, and even if something did happen, I wouldn't let us fall."

"I appreciate the sentiment, but that's really not helping," Gwen said with a grimace. "I somehow doubt you'd be able to keep the entire elevator from plummeting."

Merlin made a non-committal sound to that. It wasn't something he wanted to test out, that was true--he hated straining his magic. And it would be extremely public if it did happen.

The entire tenth floor was apparently reserved for government lawyers; Merlin recognized some of the names on the offices as they walked by, all of them people who he'd seen in court for some reason or other.

Of course Arthur's office wasn't anything like the run-down office Merlin and Gwen worked in. Stylish new furniture, a heavy desk, and organized file cabinets. There was even a telephone, just for Arthur himself. Merlin wondered if all the lawyers here had one, or if that was a privilege reserved for the governor's son.

"You're here. Good," Arthur said, looking up from the papers on his desk. He frowned slightly, and it took Merlin a moment to realize what he was frowning at: Gwen's grip on his arm.

Well, if Arthur wanted to make a thing out of it, so be it. Merlin was going to let Gwen hold onto him for as long as she wanted to.

"What did you find out?" Gwen asked, either not noticing or ignoring Arthur's glance. She steered them both towards the chairs opposite the desk, and it wasn't until they were both sitting that she let go, though she kept her hand close to Merlin.

After a brief pause, Arthur said, "You were right, of course. We were looking at it from the wrong angle. There must be a reason why Uncle Tristan was in that neighborhood, so I had his old files brought in."

He gestured at the papers on the desk. "These are the ones from the past two weeks. I've had the past three months brought up, they're in those boxes in the corner."

Merlin counted seven boxes; he wondered what amount of paperwork Tristan must have been doing to amass that many boxes of paper in just those three months.

Gwen picked up the folder closest to her. "This is good. We can find out what he was having investigated. If we can see where his focus lay--"

"Forget it," Merlin said, and immediately Gwen and Arthur turned to stare at him. "His focus was simple: magical crimes. That means everything he investigated is probably somehow tied to the Sisters or the South Siders."

"So what do you suggest, Merlin?"

"Did your uncle keep a journal? That's probably more helpful than wading through pages and pages of so-called magical crimes."

Arthur grit his teeth. "Whatever you think of the legislation, under the current law, magic is outlawed. That means that using magic is a crime, no matter what the circumstances. My uncle was doing everything in his power to keep crime--as defined by the law--to a minimum in this city."

Merlin's face was beginning to heat, and there was a large argument brewing, one that he'd already had countless times before with Arthur. No matter how often he told himself to forget it, to keep the peace just for Gwen's sake, he couldn't seem to keep his opinions to himself.

They were interrupted by the door slamming open, and an older man rushing in. "Arthur, I need you to take some cases for me, the other lawyers are all incompetent." He threw several file folders onto the desk, not even acknowledging Gwen and Merlin.

Arthur, at least, had some manners left in him. "Uncle Agravaine, good morning. Perhaps we should talk about this somewhere else?"

Merlin's eyebrows rose, and Gwen reached out to shake his arm a bit. Agravaine de Bois, current mayor of Camelot, and one of the worst things that had ever happened to the city, if you asked Merlin. Even Gwen, who tended to stay out of politics, thought the city was better off without him.

"No, all you need to do is ensure that those two men get locked up. It's bad enough when my own people are trying to circumvent justice!" Agravaine's fists were shaking as he spoke. 

Sending another glance at Merlin and Gwen, Arthur opened the folders; Merlin didn't bother trying to be discrete as he peered at them. Two pictures were clipped to the top of the folder: young men who looked just barely out of their teens, wearing clothes that obviously marked them as druids. He couldn't read any of the details, but it wasn't a stretch to imagine what they'd been brought in for.

He was on the verge of making a sarcastic comment when Gwen kicked him in the shin. Her glare said everything: _keep your mouth shut_.

Arthur's brow crinkled slightly as he read the file. "Uncle, I think there might be more pressing cases for me. These two are small fry; I should be focusing on convicting the men with connections to the Sisters or South Siders."

A surprising thing for a Pendragon to say, Merlin thought, and he focused his gaze on Arthur. Nothing in his expression belied anything but professionalism; Merlin was half tempted to feel out his aura with his magic, to see if he could get a better sense of the man.

"Just do as I say!" Agravaine barked, startling Merlin out of his reverie. Gwen visibly cringed at the tone, but Arthur seemed to take it in stride. After a moment of silence, Agravaine sighed.

"My apologies. I've been under a lot of stress lately. The election, then Tristan, and now that blasted reporter released another article smearing my good name! Can't you do anything about it?"

Arthur visibly tensed at that, and his expression went from humoring to annoyed. "You know that I no longer associate with him, and even when I did, I had no control over what he wrote."

That comment sparked curiosity in Merlin; Gwen seemed to mirror his sentiments, because she had scribbled, "reporter????" onto her notepad.

"Maybe we can call the newspaper and sue them for slander."

"Libel. And anyway, Uncle, we have freedom of the press for a reason."

"Yes, and--" Agravaine stopped abruptly, and for the first time it seemed like he was noticing Gwen and Merlin. "Who are you?"

Gwen stood up and smiled. "Gwen Smith, private investigator. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mayor de Bois." She held her hand out, and Agravaine shook it, though from the look on his face he seemed to want to wipe his hand afterward. Merlin snorted.

"And that's her partner, Merlin Emrys."

Agravaine's eyes narrowed and he fixed his stare on Merlin. "Emrys?"

"Ah, yeah," Arthur said, discomfort clear in his voice. "The investigation into him is currently at a stand-still, and there is no _concrete_ evidence against him. But Mr. Emrys and Miss Smith have graciously offered their services to help find Uncle Tristan's murderer, and I figured every little bit helps."

Merlin tried to sound as sincere as possibly as he said, "Anything for our beloved Camelot."

"Hmm. Yes." Agravaine took a step towards the door. "I think you should leave those things to the professionals, but I won't bother you anymore, Arthur. Take care of those cases I left you."

He shot one more glare at Merlin before he left the office. It wasn't until they heard the elevator leaving that Arthur breathed a sigh of relief. "I wish he wouldn't come unannounced."

"Not so fond of your uncle?" Merlin grinned; it was nice to see Arthur get rattled by something.

"More like I don't enjoy him dropping work on my lap when I'm not prepared for it."

Gwen picked up the file Agravaine had left behind. "Are you really going to prosecute them, Arthur?"

For just a brief moment, Merlin thought he saw actual regret flash across Arthur's features; a second later it was gone, and Arthur nodded. "I know that their crimes are petty in comparison to what's out there, but I can't ignore an order from the mayor. But I might find somebody else to handle it. And it doesn't have to be done now. The judges are mad anyway, with the many crimes being brought across their dockets these days."

That caused Gwen to smile slightly, and Merlin had to admit it was a nice little loophole Arthur had found. Maybe there was a little bit of good in Arthur after all. 

"So, back to Tristan." Gwen opened the box nearest to her. "Merlin, we should at least have a look to see if there's anything here that might give him a reason for having been in Mercia. And later, Arthur can go around to his house and try to see if there are private notes there. Sound good?"

Merlin nodded simply because he didn't want to get into a fight here. They all started sifting through files in silence, making the occasional notes.

It must have been about an hour later when Merlin saw it. A picture of a very familiar face, clipped to the file that Arthur was reading. He itched to grab it out from under Arthur's grasp, but he told himself to remain calm. He couldn't draw attention to it. He pretended to focus on his own file, some case involving a drive-by shooting, but now that he'd seen it, there was no way to forget.

Why did Tristan de Bois even know about that man?

The moment Arthur had set the file aside, Merlin placed his own file on top and discretely grabbed the one below.

He held his breath as he opened the folder, couldn't keep his chest from tightening as he read the name. _Mordred Nabur_.

It wasn't even a false name. 

_Affiliation with the South Side Druids. Known magic user. Close connection to Tauren O'Hare._

Then came a list of supposed crimes. At the very bottom were some of Tristan de Bois's personal notes. _Good kid. Shame about the magic. Needs guidance._

Merlin almost laughed when he read that. Of all the things to be saying about Mordred, "good kid" wasn't one he would have attributed to him. On a small paper, clipped to the file with a paperclip, was a handwritten note. _consult re wep & ag_. Wep? Ag? Couldn't the man have kept better notes?

"Oh, I think I have something!" Gwen said suddenly, startling Merlin. He dropped the folder onto one of the many piles and turned his full attention to her. 

"There's this weapons running case. Magical staves and guns with magic bullets. The deal was supposed to happen the day that he-- the day that he was murdered."

Arthur smiled at her. "See! He was there on business. He probably wanted to oversee the bust himself."

"And if it's weapons," Gwen said, "then I know who we can talk to. Um, meet us at our office in a few hours? I'll have to make some telephone calls."

"Are you sure?" Arthur asked. "I could accompany you now."

Gwen shook her head. "No, it's best if I take care of this alone. Unless, Merlin, you want to stay here?"

"That's all right, I think that's probably all we need for now. You can keep sifting if you want, Arthur." Merlin stood up, and after very brief goodbyes, he and Gwen were on their way back to their own office. Gwen didn't say much at all on the way down, just gripped his arm tightly on the elevator ride. 

Just as well. Merlin mulled over his newfound knowledge. Maybe the Druids were involved after all. While Gwen called her contacts, he would need to call his own.

* * *

Camelot Times -- Editorial -- Monday, September 20, 1927

In the wake of his brother's death, Agravaine de Bois made a "moving" speech about cracking down on magic users. He went on to promise that he would clean up the streets, and that his re-election would see us safe from magical warfare.

Gives us all a sense of déjà vu; it's the same speech he gave when campaigning for his first mayoral election. It's not the speech he gave when he was appealing to the druid crowds though; for them, he spoke of the cruelty of Prohibition and how he would do everything in his power to abolish it in his city.

Not surprising that Aggravating Agravaine is so two-faced; he's the kind of man who will do anything to secure a win. He uses the good name of his brother, his brother-in-law, and his nephew in order to appear a better man than he truly is. He will say that a re-election is the only way to keep dangerous criminals locked up, yet under his watch, more than dozens of people affiliated with Morgause Grayson's Sisters have been pardoned.

He calls himself "Hard-Handed Agravaine"; his current record speaks more of a soft hand and a hard head than anything else.

* * *

Arthur showed up at their office exactly two hours after they'd parted.

"Good, you're here," Gwen said, with a grim smile on her face. "The weapons running was a good lead. I talked to somebody about it. Now that he has a few more details, he thinks he can drum up information about what we need. Knowing the murder weapon might help too, but the tommy guns will be easier to track. After all, there's no seller without a buyer. I think if we go now we can catch my source before he closes shop for the day."

She'd gone over all of this with him earlier, enthusiastic about her lead. Merlin's own telephone calls had been met with resounding silence, though he didn't know why he'd expected more. He wasn't particularly popular these days.

"No use standing around here then." Arthur motioned toward the door. "My cab is still outside. Let's go visit your source."

They all scooted into the backseat of the cab, Gwen in the middle, and Arthur talked about all the useless information he'd gleaned reading through his uncles files. Merlin had to admire Arthur's enthusiasm though. If only he could be so good-natured in the face of failure.

Or maybe Arthur was enjoying sitting so close to Gwen; his thigh was touching hers, and his fist kept hovering near her knee, clenching and unclenching, as if he wanted to touch. Merlin bit down any words to warn him off and turned to look out the window.

"He seemed fairly optimistic this time," Gwen explained. "Last time I spoke to him, there wasn't as much to go on."

The cab brought them to the slightly dingier neighborhood that held Elyan's shop. Not quite as bad as the druid slums, but getting there. Arthur was starting to look particularly uncomfortable as the cab passed through progressively dingier neighborhoods. Not quite as bad as the druid slums, but getting there. Merlin had no sympathy for him. After all, it was the Pendragon policies that had brought the city to this state.

"Why would your friend know more than the police?" Arthur's voice had a thin sheen of worry to it, almost as if he expected to be shot at any moment. Merlin snorted to himself -- Arthur had no way of knowing that Merlin was keeping a thin shield around them, protecting them from any surprise attacks. Merlin had learned his lesson well two years ago.

The cab dropped them off in front of the familiar store. Once they'd paid the cab driver -- Arthur insisted on footing the bill, and neither Gwen nor Merlin were gracious enough to even try to protest -- Gwen led them inside. Merlin let his magic trickle out, just to test for spells, but as always the place was clean.

It had only been a few days since they'd been there last, so it was unsurprising that nothing had changed. Merlin always wondered if Elyan ever sold legitimate products, because he rarely saw people shopping for general goods. Maybe the frequent illicit purposes chased people off. Still, the general store atmosphere seemed to be fooling Arthur.

"Elyan?" Gwen called out. She headed towards the counter, where two men were talking in near whispers. Elyan looked up immediately and smiled when he saw Gwen. 

"Gwen! I'll be with you in a moment, I just need to finish up here."

"No, it's fine. I think I've got all I need," the other man -- shorter than Merlin, but with more visible muscle weight, and a three day beard -- said and stepped back. "I--" he stopped short when he saw Arthur.

Arthur visibly tensed for a fraction of a second, then turned his back to the man and acted very interested in some of the merchandise.

The man bit his lip, shook his head, then tipped his hat at Elyan. "I'll be off. See you around."

His coat brushed against Merlin as he walked past, and Merlin sneezed. For a moment Merlin's magic had reacted, sending a faint buzz down his spine, just like that magical noise he'd sensed a few days ago. He let his magic tap the man's retreating form, but there was no hint of magic or spells on him. Must have been a fluke. 

Gwen quickly stepped up to the counter, where the other man had been standing. "Elyan, you said you found something?"

A hesitant expression crossed Elyan's face, as he looked over her shoulder at Arthur. "It's probably nothing," he said. 

"Don't you dare take it back now," Gwen said. "Over the phone you got all excited when I told you about the weapons running the man had been investigating. Not to mention I gave you the make and model of the murder weapon. You said you'd be able to track it now." She lowered her voice and said something else to him, too quiet for Merlin -- and presumably Arthur-- to hear.

Arthur tapped Merlin on the shoulder and drew his attention away. "Who is he?"

"Elyan Smith. He's Gwen's brother."

Arthur's eyes widened for a moment, clearly shocked by that information. "She never mentioned a brother."

"No, she wouldn't have. He only got back to Camelot about a year ago. He'd taken off when Gwen was thirteen or so, to try to make some money out in California. Didn't work out, apparently." 

When Elyan finally returned it had caused a lot of drama, drama that Merlin had been put in the middle of. Gwen had only recently become a full partner, and between their new working relationship and all the personal stuff, there had been moments where Merlin wondered if he'd made a mistake. But in the end, Elyan turned out to be a valuable asset.

Arthur seemed to consider this carefully. "Well, if he's her brother, I should get to know him."

Merlin felt his eyebrows shoot up; the disbelief must have been quite clear on his face, because Arthur scowled. "I mean, well. You know. Guinevere seems to care about him?"

"Well, I suppose. She comes here for information, he gives it to her. I don't think she's ever talked about him outside of a professional capacity."

"Oh."

They fell into a short silence while Gwen and Elyan discussed the new information. It wouldn't do for Arthur to start paying attention to possibly illicit information, so Merlin quickly tried to come up with something to say.

"How long has it been since you really spoke to Gwen anyway?" He wanted to kick himself as soon as the question was out; he didn’t need to try to get involved in this budding relationship.

Arthur seemed fairly put out by the question too. "Well--"

The front window exploded.

Merlin barely had time to push himself and Arthur down, covering them in a shield -- and a moment later he remembered that under no circumstance could Arthur ever discover his magic, so he had to drop the shield. It was harder, when every part of him screamed to protect himself. The glass shards that hadn't already been deflected dug into his skin, cutting and scraping. He covered Arthur's body with his own to keep the glass from hurting him, at least. No sense in both of them getting injured.

Gwen was screaming, and through squinted eyes he could see Elyan running past them, holding what looked like a shotgun. He fired three rounds, almost inaudible against the sound of a loud engine and wheels squealing.

Arthur was up before Merlin, pushing him away. His shoes crunched against the splintered glass as he rushed towards the back counter. "Guinevere, are you all right?"

"I-- I'm fine," she answered, sounding completely shaken.

Merlin put his hand out to leverage himself, and cursed when he placed it right on top of some glass, fine pinpricks of pain shooting up his arm. He risked a glance and saw the blood trickling out slowly. Clenching his hand into a fist made the pain worse, and for a moment he wondered if he'd done serious damage to his hand. 

Arthur stared at him, wide eyed. "Did you just--" He pushed Merlin back and pulled at Merlin's wrist to get a better look at the injuries. "We need to get you to a doctor!"

"No, I'm fine," Merlin said, standing up. "It'll heal." Eventually. He made his way over to Elyan's side.

"Did you see who it was?" he asked.

Elyan shook his head, though his shotgun was still leveled out at the street. "No. They got away. Were driving a standard Model T Ford."

"Manage to read the plate?"

"No," Elyan said with a grim set to his mouth. "Shit." He finally lowered his gun and turned to survey the damage. "See any bullets? Or were they just magical blasts?"

Merlin closed his eyes and let his magic run over the store, careful to skirt around Arthur and Gwen. If it had been a spell, though, no trace of it was left. He shook his head. "Probably not magic, but let's see if we can find the bullets anyway."

Elyan went to the backroom, brought out two brooms and a pan and handed one to Gwen. "Right. Let's clean up the glass, and keep an eye out for bullets. Should at least tell us what caliber weapon they were using. That could narrow things down a bit. The South Siders don't use the same weapons as the Sisters."

Arthur frowned. "We should keep the crime scene as is, so the police can come investigate."

Gwen, Merlin, and Elyan glanced between each other, biting their lips. Finally, Gwen said, "I don't think that's going to happen, Arthur."

"What? Why not? This is a crime, and a magic related one at that. We need to call up the police and have them check this out."

Elyan pointedly swept the glass in front of him towards the pan. "Right. Like the police care about a small shop at the edge of the slums. They never do anything about the gang violence any other day, why should they care today?"

"But--"

Gwen placed a gentle hand on Arthur's arm. "Arthur, leave it. That's just the way things are. I know you keep saying you want things to change, but... the city isn't there yet."

Arthur accepted Gwen's comfort, placed his own hand over hers. Something sharp shot through Merlin's heart, twisting when he caught the looks Arthur and Gwen gave each other.

He had to forget it. Gwen deserved to find somebody, and if that took her further from Merlin, so be it. Jealousy was stupid and he'd long ago decided he wouldn't do it. Even if he wished Gwen had better taste than Arthur, because how was he supposed to see her if her new beau was simultaneously trying to get Merlin locked up?

Merlin ripped his attention back to the matter at hand. "I think it's safe to say that somebody has it out for one of us."

Gwen seemed to realize how it must look, with she and Arthur touching each other, because she blushed brightly and stepped away from him. She fiddled with some of her hair, while her eyes wandered across the scene. "It looks like there are at least three shells here."

She pointed them out and Elyan gingerly picked them out, careful to avoid the glass. "Hmm. I'd say they were 12-gauge shotguns. But both the South Siders and the Sisters like these, and there are a number of smaller gangs that favor them as well. Not to mention how easy they are to procure."

Great. A dead end. Frustration rose inside Merlin, and he had the sudden urge to sweep all the glass out of the way with his magic. He settled for clenching his fist instead and ended up wincing when the glass cut into his skin. When he opened his hand, he saw drops of blood gathering in his palm. 

"How did they even know I'd be here?" Arthur asked. "I mean, nobody even knows I hired you two."

"That's kind of presumptuous of you, isn't it?" Merlin bit out.

"I'm sorry?"

"They could have been shooting at me, or at Gwen, or even at Elyan."

"But you're the one who said--"

"It doesn't matter!" Gwen quickly shouted. "Look, whoever it was, they're gone. Let's concentrate on what we _can_ figure out. Like what we came here for. Elyan, did you hear anything else about Tristan de Bois, anything to explain why he might have been in Mercia?"

Elyan glanced at Arthur, then shrugged. "One of my friends who works at the cafe down that way, she said that she saw Tauren O'Hare there."

"That's the leader of the South Siders!" Arthur near-shouted, as if the rest of them didn't know that already. "That means it might not have been Morgana who ordered the hit. We need to talk to O'Hare."

Elyan and Gwen looked doubtful. Merlin personally agreed with them, though probably for a completely different reason. 

After all, he was the only one in the room who knew that wherever Tauren O'Hare went, Mordred Nabur followed. And out of all the magic users in Camelot, only Mordred came close to matching Merlin's power.

* * *

When Merlin got home, Mordred was waiting for him.

 _I didn't kill that man either,_ Mordred said, as a way of greeting. Or thought it; Merlin had never learned the trick of speaking mind-to-mind, but it was one of Mordred's preferred methods of communication. Nobody could eavesdrop on a mental conversation, no matter how hard they tried.

Merlin rolled his eyes and let his magic unlock the door. 

Merlin went inside and didn't bother inviting Mordred, though he wasn't surprised when Mordred followed anyway. He grabbed the whiskey from a kitchen cabinet and poured only one glass, since Mordred didn't drink.

"Well? I assume you're here for more than just to tell me you didn't kill de Bois. I already knew that, anyway. Though a witness saw Tauren there -- is that actually true or was the witness lying as well?"

_He was there. So was I. The Sisters ambushed us. De Bois got caught in the crossfire._

Merlin snorted in disbelief and took a sip of his drink. It was highly unlikely that de Bois just happened to be there when the shooting happened -- the coincidence was just far too great. If there was one thing that Merlin had learned during his years dealing with the magical, it was that almost nothing happened without a reason. But information like that was valuable, and could mean the difference between a friend and a knife in the back. Mordred knew the business far too well to fall into obvious traps.

 _I heard about what happened today. I wanted to assure you that it wasn't my people. I would never try to have you harmed, Emrys,_ Mordred continued. He stepped close to Merlin and took the glass out of his hand, setting it down on the kitchen table.

 _Let me heal you_. Mordred took Merlin's injured hand into his; he whispered a spell and a soft warmth flooded through Merlin. When that subsided, Mordred lifted Merlin's hand up and placed a kiss on the palm. _You shouldn't be so reckless._

Merlin shrugged. "It doesn't really matter, does it?"

Mordred's tongue flitted out and licked between Merlin's fingers. _You'll scar. Even magic won't stop that._

It always started like this, and as always, Merlin found that whatever questions he had were becoming less and less important. Mordred wasn't going to answer anyway; might as well just give in and enjoy himself.

Merlin shivered under the magical touch. This was a bad idea. If Gwen knew, she would be furious. If Arthur knew, he would probably have Merlin arrested. It certainly wouldn't allay the suspicions that Merlin was involved with the crime syndicates.

But it felt so good, and few other things made him forget about the rest of his life. Merlin didn't shy away from Mordred's first touch, and he leaned in for the second and third touches. Merlin was the one to initiate their kisses, and Merlin was the one who brought their magic closer together.

 _Emrys,_ Mordred whispered into his mind, tinged with power and lust. _I want you._

"Yes," Merlin answered. They kissed their way to Merlin's sofa bed, losing ties and shoes along the way. Merlin was glad that he never bothered to fold up the bed, so that he didn't have to waste any time throwing Mordred onto it and climbing on top of him. 

Mordred's magic had a different taste to it than Morgana's -- with Morgana, Merlin always felt like they were warring for dominance, and he was only one wrong move away from being entirely consumed. Mordred, on the other hand, pulled him in, called to him and asked his magic to swallow Mordred whole.

"I shouldn't," Merlin mumbled. 

But then, that was how he always seemed to run his life: by doing things he shouldn't. In the end, it wouldn't make much of a difference anyway. 

He let himself enjoy the night.

* * *

Mordred got up in the middle of the night, shifting so much that Merlin was forced to wake as well. That was probably the point, Merlin thought bitterly, because usually Mordred managed to slip out completely unnoticed.

 _Tristan was my friend_ , Mordred whispered as he pulled on his pants. _I didn't want him to be killed._

Merlin frowned. "But Tristan de Bois was one of the people very heavily against magic. Didn't he donate around five thousand dollars to the Anti-Sorcery League last year?"

 _Tristan hated the results of magic, not the people_ , Mordred said. After a brief hesitation, he added, _And he didn't know that I was the leader of the South Siders. Most people believe Tauren is the one who runs the show._

As Arthur did, and as Gwen and Elyan did. If any of them could sense the power inside Mordred the way Merlin could, they would have no doubts as to the true leader. Tauren had barely enough magic to light a fire.

That was the irony of the whole mess: the fact that most of the people in those so-called "sorcery" gangs weren't even magical. One didn't need magic to run brothels or gambling dens. The only reason they were even connected to sorcery was because of the additional money the gangs decided to make by running magic talismans and potions.

"Why were you meeting with him?" Merlin asked.

 _He said he had something important to tell me._ For a moment, Mordred's expression slipped into one of actual sadness. _We were attacked before we even had time to sit down._

Merlin sighed. "So what do I do now? Tell Arthur that it was definitely not the South Siders, Tristan was Modred's friend? I doubt he'd believe me, assuming he even knows you exist."

_I don't care what you tell him, Emrys. So long as my name isn't associated with his murder. I liked him too much for that._

Mordred finished dressing and glanced at Merlin. For a moment, Merlin thought Mordred might try to kiss him, but Mordred just turned away with a shake of his head. He used magic to lock the door behind him.

Merlin mulled over what Mordred had told him. If he pursued this, as Arthur had asked them to, it would lead straight back to Morgana. That would be a lot of grief for him, and for Gwen. Not to mention Elyan, and if this somehow got back to Merlin's mother... 

Whatever. He would think about it in the morning. Merlin pulled the sheets over his head and went back to sleep.

* * *

Druid Herald -- April 16, 1923

**Anniversary of Prohibition**

Ten years ago, South 32nd Street was a bustling boulevard full of thriving businesses, crowded with families and children. You could walk between the brightly colored stalls and find a talisman to keep mice out of the kitchen, a potion for a winter cough, and a little powder that when thrown on a fire would make flames dance into dragons. If you lived in the neighborhood, you were surrounded by good business, good restaurants, good schools, and good people. 

Today on the tenth anniversary of the Ygraine Act, South 32nd Street is a slum. Windows are boarded over, graffiti marks the area as gang territory, and a pall of poverty curses the families who live there. Overnight, the Ygraine Act, which bans the use and evidence of all magic, destroyed this once thriving druid community.

Governor Pendragon argues that magic is the seed of corruption. Magic, like any other tool, has always had the potential to be used as a malevolent force. But it is just a tool, and its ban has not reduced the magical crime rates in this city. Indeed, I would argue that the Ygraine Act has caused more harm to the citizens of Camelot than good.

Since the ban on magic, the druid districts of the city have plummeted into poverty and decay. Trade in magical services was the livelihood of the middle and low-class druids, and the destruction of their economic support system left them vulnerable to violence from both police raids and the gang warfare. 

Since the ban on magic, crime in our city has risen. Without a legal trade in magical services, criminals took magic to the black market and with it, took control of the streets as they fight for control. People fear for their lives and don't dare go out after dark, never certain whether or not turning a corner will land them in the middle on a gunfight or magical battle for territory. 

Since the ban on magic, police have wasted their time and resources tracking down those who drink a few potions, light up their houses with a few spells, while the real crime -- the murders, gunfights, and rampant corruption in our city -- goes unpunished.

Prohibition has made it clear that the politicians, the rich, the famous, all ignore the law as they see fit. There is nothing quite as extravagant as a party at Miss Catrina Troil's mansion. And how can we forget the magical fireworks that were sent flying at James Bayard's Fourth of July celebration?

I ask, where do they get a hold of their ingredients, potions, and spells? Certainly not from the druids, whose businesses have all been closed. The only viable source of magic these days comes in the form of Morgause Grayson's Camelot Sisters, or Tauren O'Hare's South Side Druids.

Far from helping our city, the Ygraine Act has been nothing more than a power play among the rich and powerful at the expense of the druids who have been unfairly crushed beneath their feet.

Happy anniversary. 

** G. Orkney **  


* * *

Mordred had left him a business card. 

"Gwaine Orkney, Journalist."

On the back, somebody -- presumably Mordred -- had written an address different to the one on the front, along with "come at around 6 pm."

That gave Merlin most of the day to decide whether or not he was going. He told Gwen about the encounter -- turning Mordred into just "a friend in the South Siders who saw what happened" -- and they deliberated about whether to tell Arthur or not.

"He deserves to know," Gwen argued. "I mean, his uncle could have been corrupt, if he was associating with South Siders. And whether he was or not, it's looking more and more like the Sisters had a strong hand in it. Morgana would definitely have motive." She tapped a finger impatiently against her desk, which usually indicated that she was unsure. Merlin couldn't blame her.

"If we tell him where we got the information... well, Arthur's really not going to believe that I don't have magic after that. I just happened to have a quick after-dinner drink with one of the higher ups of the South Siders? Yeah right."

"It does happen though, doesn't it? I mean, Elyan says he'll often see cops and known gang members having lunch together down in his neck of the woods. A lot of them grew up together, and that's not something you forget just because you go into different professions..."

In the end, Gwen went off to do a bit more digging of her own, while Merlin made up his mind and decided to head to the address in question.

It turned out to be a saloon, The Singing Siren, with an old, faded sign in one of the windows proclaiming, "All creatures welcome except Pendragons." Merlin chuckled a bit at the terrible joke, but it was easy to see that the sign had been there for years. Probably from before Prohibition went into effect.

The saloon itself was in disrepair, probably because without magic, it was a lot harder to maintain paint and upholstery. It was sad to see what once would have been a bustling neighborhood hub reduced to something like this. The people themselves looked haggard, most likely from a hard day's work in a factory or out in the fields. Again, some of these people had been fine magical craftsmen, only to have their main source of livelihood stolen away from them. 

Merlin clenched his fist. He could do nothing to help here. He couldn't even offer to use his magic to spruce up the place a bit, because he was sure that enough desperate, self-serving people in the room would be more than happy to turn him in to the authorities for the promised reward. With the police force already suspecting him of de Bois's murder, Merlin could not afford even the smallest slip-up.

He went to sit down by the bar and hailed the bar tender over. "I'm looking for someone," Merlin started, and the bar tender snorted.

"Aren't we all?"

"No, a specific someone." Merlin showed the man the business card. "Gwaine Orkney. Have you seen him around here?"

The bar tender looked at Merlin and raised his eyebrow. Right. Merlin sighed and pulled fifty cents out of his jacket pocket. "I was told he might be here tonight."

Well, he had assumed that this journalist would be here -- why else would Mordred have bothered leaving the note? -- but for all Merlin knew, the words on the back had been written long before.

"Talk to Freya. She knows most of the people here by name," the bartender said as he scooped up the coins. "She's the woman over there, cleaning the tables."

Freya was small and pretty, and had a hint of magic in her -- not enough to attract attention, but enough that Merlin got curious. She squeaked when he approached her, dropping the rag she'd been using to clean the tables.

"I just want to ask a few questions," Merlin said, lowering his hands when she stared at them. That probably meant she could sense his power. And she was... afraid? She was tense, as if she would flee at a moment's notice.

"You're a..."

She stopped herself before she finished her sentence, twisting her head around to see who was listening. 

Merlin nodded and said, "Yeah, I'm a private investigator. My name is Merlin Emrys. I was told you know Gwaine Orkney?"

Freya shrank back from him. "I'm... I'm not sure I should talk to you."

"What? Why not?"

"You're... magic." She whispered the last word, like it was evil. Merlin was startled enough that she'd been able to sense his power -- in general he tended to go by unnoticed, especially by those with less magic -- but more so by the tone in her voice, when she so obviously shared his magical gift. He let his magic ghost over her, tentatively, to show that he wasn't dangerous. That backfired when she gasped loudly and took two steps away, her eyes wide with fear. Merlin's heart fell when he realized that the magic on her wasn't a gift: it was a _curse_. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't meant to--"

Freya was staring down at her hand, and when Merlin followed her gaze, he noticed that it was no longer small and pale -- it was larger, covered in dark fur and had long, sharp claws. Merlin took another look around the room, grabbed her furred hand into his, and pulled her towards the empty corner table. She went willingly, though Merlin could feel her shoulders twitching when he coaxed her to sit down.

He sat opposite her and folded his arms in front of him on the table. "Freya, what happened?"

"You're not... you're not going to cast spells, are you?"

"In public? No. It's illegal, anyway."

That seemed to help calm her a bit. She placed both her hands in front of her, and Merlin watched in fascination as the furry one slowly shifted back into a normal, human hand. 

"It's a curse, right? Have you talked to anybody? Maybe somebody could undo it."

Freya shook her head. "No. Nobody can. And it's against the law now. I'm not going to make anybody break it." There was a small, defiant set to her lip once she said that, and Merlin couldn't help but feel sad about it. Sometimes it was hard to remember that magic could have dark side effects.

"I could look into it--"

"No!" True panic filled in her voice, enough to draw the attention of a few of the patrons. Freya shook her head and smiled nervously at one man in particularly, assuring him that she was all right. After a few breaths to calm herself, she turned her attention back to Merlin. "You wanted to ask me something? If not... If not, I'm leaving."

"Right, okay. Um. Somebody told me to meet Gwaine Orkney here. Have you seen him around?"

Freya glanced about the room again. "That man, over there," she said, pointing with a dainty finger at the man she had smiled at. Her finger, which had a moment ago been clawed and deformed, was back to normal. Merlin made a mental note to look up Freya's curse and see if he could find a cure. Most curses had a way to reverse themselves, after all. Permanent curses were harder to cast.

The man Freya pointed to was playing cards with three other people, laughing loudly and drinking something that couldn't have been more than rotgut. The other players appeared to be enjoying themselves slightly less, going from the deep frowns on some of their faces. 

Merlin took one last glance at Freya before excusing himself. He felt bad; he wanted to help her, but she probably wouldn't open up to him now, and Merlin couldn't do anything without more information. Better to work on what he had come here for.

"Can I join?" Merlin asked, pulling a chair over and sitting down between Gwaine and one of the less savory looking men. Gwaine was the one with the most money on his end of the table by far, which made the mood of the other men less surprising.

"Of course! The more the merrier," Gwaine said with a smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. "In fact, let me get you a drink. Barkeep! Some good beer for my new friend here!"

Merlin snorted at that. How some people could so easily throw the word "friend" around, he didn't know.

"Let's deal you in. How much you want to bet?"

Merlin pulled what he had out of his pockets: three one dollar coins, seventy-three cents, and a button. Gwaine laughed. "A high roller, are you?"

"Oh yes, that's me."

The other men at the table didn't seem particularly happy, but only one of them grumbled. "Hurry up then, give us a chance to win back our money."

Gwaine rolled his eyes. "It's funny that you think you'll be able to win anything. You haven't yet."

Two rounds in, it was easy to see why Gwaine was winning: he cheated. After that, Merlin felt only a little bad that he was using his magic to discreetly mark the cards, especially since he wasn't able to counter Gwaine's blatant use of extra cards. 

Concentrating was getting a bit hard too, because his magic was buzzing gently, trying to reach out to something. When Merlin glanced around the room, he caught Freya's eye, and she quickly turned away. 

"It's no fun playing against you, Orkney," the man sitting next to Merlin said, drawing Merlin's attention back to the game. "I'm out for the night. See you later!" He stood up and left, followed soon by the other two men.

"I'm surprised they let you get away with that," Merlin said when it was just the two of them. Gwaine put on an innocent look, so Merlin added, "The cheating."

Gwaine chuckled. "Well, they're a bit scared of me, truth be told."

"Oh?"

Gwaine shook his head. "Maybe they think I'll write something bad about them in the newspaper? The name's Gwaine Orkney, by the way. I'm a journalist."

He extended his hand, and Merlin shook it. "Merlin Emrys."

Gwaine cocked his head, and for a moment Merlin caught a chill down his spine, enhancing that strange buzz he'd been feeling for the past hour. He hadn't forgotten the concerned look Gwaine had shot at Freya, and Merlin wondered briefly if this was where Gwaine would pick a fight. 

But the moment passed. Gwaine just smiled. "What can I do for you? Unless you really came to play poker with me."

"No, I..." Merlin fumbled. What _was_ he doing there? "Somebody told me you'd be here. I'm looking into what happened with Tristan de Bois," he finally said. He had no idea how much Gwaine already knew, but it was best to keep his cards close to the table.

Gwaine's eyes tightened briefly. "I thought I recognized you."

"Me?" Merlin didn't think he'd met Gwaine before.

Gwaine paused and looked around the room. His gaze lingered on Freya, who smiled meekly. When he turned back to Merlin, he said, "You were there yesterday, at Elyan's place, weren't you?"

"I... yes?" 

"You probably don't remember, but I left just as you came in. I guess you weren't there to buy goods after all."

The image of Gwaine flashed through his mind, and yes, he did remember now. Merlin also remembered the strange tug on his magic, but as before, he couldn't sense any magic on Gwaine. He let his magic travel over Gwaine's entire body, just to be sure, but nothing.

Gwaine stared at Merlin, and Merlin realized he was waiting for a response. "Oh, no. Elyan is a friend."

"An informant."

Shoot. Merlin didn't know how public Elyan made his services, but he probably wouldn't appreciate Merlin blabbing his secrets to half the town. "That's..."

"Relax. I pay him for information too. And coincidentally, I was _also_ looking into Tristan de Bois's murder. It would make a great story for me."

Of course. Whichever newspaper broke the identity of de Bois's murder first would probably see their sales roar. It made sense that Gwaine had been poking around.

"I'm positive it was somebody in the Sisters that ordered the hit," Gwaine said. "It doesn't seem like the South Siders' style, they're more the put-something-in-your-drink types."

Merlin and Gwaine both glanced down at their drinks. Merlin broke the silence by laughing. "I guess you're right. Though I'm not sure if I'd rather confront somebody from the Sisters or the South Siders. Morgause Grayson is terrifying."

That got another chuckle out of Gwaine. "Well, I'm sure she'll make a public statement soon about how terrible she finds the state of things, and how she's just a law abiding citizen, and that the city is out to harass her."

Merlin remembered a year ago, after a large explosion in the city, how Morgause had loudly proclaimed her innocence. All kind of tacky. When Nimueh had been in charge, the underground actually stayed underground. Morgause had more of a taste for flair though.

"So, if it's somebody in the Sisters... do you think this is connected to Morgana le Fay?" Merlin asked, just to feel things out. 

Gwaine scoffed. "I guess everybody and their dog knows she's in town."

"Well, there was an article about her in the Tribune." 

"Right, well. Your terrible choice in reading material aside, it's true that she's around. I've been told that she's holing up in one of Morgause's hide-outs, though I'd warn you off against trying to track her down. You don't look like you could last a minute in a real firefight." Gwaine downed the last of his drink and set the glass down loudly.

"I'm not sure I'd be able to find her based on that vague information anyway. Presumably, Morgause's hide-outs are, well, hidden?" Merlin knew that she still used some of Nimueh's old haunts, but most of her business was now done in some lair she took care to keep secret.

"Yeah. And she probably uses magic to hide them anyway, so ordinary folk can't even hope to get in." Gwaine sighed loudly.

Merlin drummed his fingers against the table. "You're awfully helpful, you know? Most of the time I need to pay people to get even this little information. Though that still doesn't get me any closer to proving that Morgause had a hand in de Bois's murder."

"Yeah, well. I do always appreciate it when a man lets me win at poker. Particularly when he doesn't tell the other players how much of a cheat I am." Gwaine stood up and clapped Merlin on the back. "Try that hotel near the train station, Hotel Fyrien. I'll see you around."

"Uh, thank you?" Merlin watched Gwaine leave, and had the weirdest feeling he had missed something important. He really shouldn't be surprised, given that Mordred had pointed him this way. Mordred never did like to give an easy answer to anything.

* * *

**Druid Herald - Letters to the Editors -- December 28, 1912**

With the 18th amendment, the Ygraine Act, only a few days away from being put into effect, we've decided to print our readers' opinions on the matter, from both sides. 

**The hurt it has caused**

My family was completely ordinary. My mother, my father, my older brother and my two younger sisters. My father worked in construction, helping to build the large towers in this marvelous city of ours. He used to point out what buildings he worked on whenever we walked passed them. He was saving up for property near the lake, and we would all pitch in to build the house together.

Then one day, a sorcerer accosted me and cursed me. He murdered my family and left me with this terrible burden. It wasn't enough for him to rob me of my family -- now, I can barely interact with people.

I've spoken to others like me, who have fallen to the blind whims of those with magic. I tried to get the police to help me, but they turned me away and laughed.

Sorcery needs to be banned, to stop people from abusing their power. I don't want there to be more people like me out there, cut off from society because of some petty cruelty.

F. Black

 

**Integral part of Druid Life**

I find it appalling that in this day and age, the government should try to rob citizens -- and lest we forget, Druids ARE citizens of our fine nation -- of such an important aspect of their culture.

It might be hard for non-Druids to understand how much magic is interwoven in our religion and our daily life. But know this: it is as if the government were locking you out of your churches and denying you the right to worship God.

Even worse: magic has always been a way for us to bond with each other and help each other through tough times. It's a means of getting by -- many Druids use magic to help with their work -- and a way of entertainment. There is a clear difference in quality in films made with magic and those without. Is the nation to be denied its entertainment on the whims of a vocal minority?

I have yet to see any proof of magic truly corrupting a person, as those in the Anti-Sorcery League claim. It is about as corrupting as a gun, and yet I see no people wish to deny anybody the right to bear arms.

Gilli  


* * *

Merlin went into the office the next morning, mulling over what he had learned (or not learned). More importantly, he wanted to know why Mordred thought Merlin should meet Gwaine. He was just a journalist--not even a particularly well-known one at that.

A few notes from Gwen were left on the table, mentioning a few possible leads of some people who might have seen something, but overall, it didn't look like she'd been more successful than he had.

It was strange that she wasn't already at the office though. They needed to get on top of things, to plan their strategy so they could finally wrap things up so that at least Merlin could be rid of Arthur. He rather suspected Gwen wanted Arthur to stick around a bit.

An hour had passed -- an hour that Merlin spent phoning around a few other sources and coming up blank -- when Gwen finally made it through the door. She was looking down, and there was a smile on her face that she seemed to be trying to hide. Merlin bit back a chuckle at how obvious she was being.

"Had a good time last night?"

"What?" Gwen looked up, startled, and her face tinged red.

"With Arthur?"

"How did you--" She stopped short when he smirked at her.

"Well, now I'm sure." Merlin moved to the couch and beckoned her to sit next to him. "Come on, I can see you're dying to tell me."

For a moment, Merlin thought she'd try to deny it, but then her smile widened and she took the other end of the couch. "We went out to dinner! It was amazing. And we managed to get through the evening without Arthur even once accusing you of nasty things."

"Wow, he's trying really hard for you," Merlin said.

"Actually, he wanted me to thank you. For protecting him from the glass the other night. Said to tell him how much the doctor charged you, because he'd be willing to cover the costs."

They both looked down at Merlin's hands, which were perfectly healed. "Uh, I wasn't charged for this."

"But, you can't heal yourself. Who did you go to see for this?"

He couldn't well tell her about Mordred, so Merlin shrugged. "A friend of mine."

Gwen pursed her lips. "Not Morgana?"

"No! I wouldn't trust her to do magic on me. That's just asking for trouble. Besides, I doubt she'd be strong enough."

Gwen didn't quite seem to believe him, but she went on to detail the rest of her evening with Arthur. Perfect gentleman, that Pendragon was, opening doors for her and pulling out the chair for her and overall treating her like a true lady. 

"The only other person who's ever done that for me is Lance, and, well, I doubt Arthur is going to just disappear from one day to the next," Gwen said, so casually that Merlin almost didn't register her words. 

It had been so long since she'd mentioned Lance, even longer since she'd said his name without some sort of anger behind the words. Merlin felt the regular surge of guilt at the thought of Lance, but he kept his mouth shut and let Gwen continue her story. This was no time to try to quash her anger at Lance. Yes, Merlin much preferred Lance over Arthur, but it was Gwen's choice.

"Arthur wants to meet this afternoon so we can pool all the information we've got so far. Did you find anything new?"

"Ah, yeah, I talked to a journalist who gave me a few tidbits. Not sure how good it is -- you know how journalists are -- but he got recommended to me by a… friend--" Merlin cringed at how he stumbled over that word, "-- so I hope his information is good. He also suggested we head to the Fyrien Hotel, you know, the one near the central train station?"

"All right, sounds good," Gwen said, and the way she smiled it seemed she was too much in her own world to care about Merlin's sources. "Let's call Arthur and have him meet us there."

At least one good thing that came out of Gwen and Arthur hooking up: Merlin's own romantic entanglements were getting less scrutiny.

* * *

The hotel was one of those swanky ones obviously meant for the rich and famous. Merlin didn't think he'd be able to afford a single night's stay even if he saved up for a year. The bellhop gave them a nasty look when they walked past him, but Gwen and Merlin looked just this side of reputable that the guy probably decided it wasn't worth pissing them off.

"It looks fairly normal to me. If you could afford it," Gwen said, doing a quick three-sixty of the entrance lobby. 

Merlin let his magic flow out of him, just enough to get a magical feel for the place. None of the staff were obviously magical, but-- he frowned when his magic came across a roadblock. 

"What is it?" Gwen asked.

Merlin shook his head. "No, I'm sure it's nothing-- wait, that's wrong. It's definitely something, but I'm not sure whether it's a bad something or a good something."

"What do you mean?"

"Something is blocking my magic. As in, there's a big shiny padlock and it's telling me I can't go any further."

"Can you get around it?"

"I could, but I wouldn't be able to put the, uh, padlock back to exactly how I found it. They'd know that somebody tampered with it, and since only a few sorcerers are strong enough to do something like that…"

"They'd be able to track it back down to you. Okay, maybe we'll have better luck the traditional way." Gwen glanced up at the clock that hung from a center column. "Arthur's late."

The clock read 12:10; they'd agreed to meet at noon. Merlin shrugged. "Maybe he got held up at work? Or there's traffic."

"Let's sit and wait for him." They headed over to the small lounge area and sat on one of the couches. Merlin sighed and wished the couch in their office was this comfortable. It would make staying overnight at the office less of a pain.

Gwen knocked her knee against his. "Do you remember? My first big case was that heiress that disappeared from her hotel room."

Merlin smiled. "Yeah. Good thing you and Lance were helping me, I think I would have bungled that one up."

She giggled slightly. "You were hopeless! It's like you were never a teen-aged girl yourself!"

"I haven't been a teener in so long, Gwen, never mind a teen-aged girl." He winked at her, and she laughed outright. "How was I supposed to know that a movie star would have that much draw?"

"You obviously don't understand a lady's heart! Though Lance was pretty clueless as well. 'Is this man really that handsome?'" She mimicked Lance's extra polite way of speaking so perfectly that Merlin doubled over in laughter.

"Miss Smith, do _you_ find Pellinore Rose attractive?" Merlin tried in his own Lance impression, and Gwen giggled and shook her head at him.

"He was pretty cute, wasn't he?"

"Pellinore? Or Lance?"

Gwen's smile lost a few degrees of brightness. "Lance. It's too bad he was too damn noble to stick around."

Now Merlin felt bad for even having brought him up. Lance was a bit of a sore spot for Gwen. The worst of it was that he couldn't say anything. He couldn't tell her where Lance was, or why Lance had gone, because he'd promised Lance that he wouldn't.

Merlin glanced at the clock, just so he could change the subject. "Is Arthur usually this late?"

"No, he tends to be punctual."

By forty minutes past their arranged meeting time, all the good cheer left them. It could be nothing, but the way this case was going, Merlin didn't want to risk it. Both of them stood up and headed over to the front desk.

"May we please use your telephone?" Gwen asked the clerk.

"It's for customers only," the clerk responded, giving them both a nasty glare.

Merlin rolled his eyes and fished a coin out of his pocket. "Here, we're paying. This is related to a police matter."

The coin turned out to be a full dollar -- more than Merlin had hoped to be paying, but at this point it was too late to take it back. The clerk snatched the coin away from Merlin and moved the telephone to stand near them. 

"Make it quick though, I don't want the boss to get mad at me."

Gwen smiled and nodded, then began to dial. Merlin wasn't surprised that she had already memorized Arthur's office telephone number.

"I'm sorry, is Mr. Arthur Pendragon there? He left? Well, he was supposed to meet with me for a work-related matter, only he's almost an hour late."

As the conversation continued, Gwen's brows creased further and further. From the sound of it, it wasn't good news.

After another few minutes, Gwen hung up and passed the telephone back to the clerk. "I think something's wrong."

"I agree. This entire case has been fishy since the start, and I don't much like the odds of Arthur still being safe."

They headed back out to the front of the hotel. Merlin did another quick magical sweep of the place, but aside from that strong magical lock, he couldn't sense anything out of the ordinary. On the other hand, who was strong enough to ward a hotel of this size? He could count them on one hand. Himself, Mordred, and Morgause. 

Merlin frowned. Unless a new sorcerer was in town. Somehow he doubted it though; there was no way a sorcerer that strong would be able to get into the city and without being noticed. Either way, something was definitely going on in this hotel that the owners didn't want anybody to know about.

"Who owns this place anyway?" Merlin asked, more to himself than anything.

The snotty bellhop by the door scoffed loudly. "You waltz in here and don't even know? It's the mayor himself, Agravaine de Bois!"

Both Gwen and Merlin gaped at the bellhop for a moment before rushing away. Shit.

"I knew he was trouble," Merlin mumbled.

Gwen nodded. "We need to find Arthur."

* * *

Nobody had seen Arthur since he'd left his office building to meet them at the hotel. 

"I should have insisted we meet him at our office," Gwen said, hours after they'd talked to every person who would speak to them. They'd called all the cab companies, they'd walked from Arthur's office to the hotel and back again, but there were no clues to be found. Merlin's feet hurt and he was hungry. It was a relief to buy dinner and head back to the office, even if they were no further than when they'd started.

"And then they'd think we were responsible for that, too. No. Don't worry, we'll find him." Merlin put as much conviction as possible into his voice, but it came out more tired than anything else.

Looking at everything that had happened, Merlin wondered if the target of the shooting at Elyan's store had been Arthur after all, and not him. It certainly would make sense if they wanted to keep Arthur from investigating further. Merlin had just assumed that it was Morgause and her grudge against him.

"I'll go out, talk to some people. Maybe they know where Arthur is," Merlin mumbled. Gwen answered with a soft snore, passed out on the couch.

Merlin left the office, walked down the street to the closest pay telephone and let his magic dial for him.

He hung up the moment he got through to the other end and waited: after a moment, a blue butterfly flew out of the receiver, made entirely out of magic. When it flew off, it left behind a magical trail, invisible to all but Merlin.

The night air was cool, and Merlin could feel the beginnings of a storm. He wondered if he could push it to the other side of the city at least, but he was feeling drained. Too many things were asking for his attention, and messing with the weather was something he reserved for absolute necessities. Besides, the way his luck was going, somebody would notice and alert the police on him.

Merlin laughed at that thought, and hoped Arthur was alive and well enough that he could prosecute silly, inexplicable shifts in weather.

After half an hour, the butterfly trail led to a small door, hidden in an alley. The door had no doorknob and the hinges indicated that it swung out into the street. 

Merlin knocked.

"Password?"

The signal he'd been following burst into fireworks and dissipated. An invitation to a private club, apparently. The door swung open.

The inside was musky with smoke. Jazz music was playing, and the patrons were all either watching the singer on stage or keeping a low conversation going. Merlin scanned the room and quickly spotted the person who had invited him.

He slid into the bench across from Mordred.

 _I'm happy you called for me,_ Mordred said. 

"It seems I've got no choice. There's nobody else I can ask," Merlin answered. He tried to get a better assessment of the speakeasy, but he couldn't sense any obvious traps. It was possible that Mordred had spent enough to mask them even from Merlin, but that seemed to be a lot of effort to go through. Besides, Mordred looked up to Merlin too much for that.

Mordred ignored the tone. _Emrys, I'm sure you've noticed the change in the air._

"The only thing in the air I see right now is smoke. Speaking of, can you butt me?"

Mordred rolled his eyes -- a gesture Merlin had only ever seen him do once before -- and motioned for a waiter to come over. "A pack of cigarettes, please."

"Certainly. What brand, sir?"

"Lucky Strikes. I feel like I need a bit of luck," Merlin said. "And a drink, please?"

"Moonshine," Mordred amended. "The best."

The waiter nodded and left them.

"It's weird when you speak out loud," Merlin said. "I forget you have a real voice sometimes, since you keep doing the creepy talking-in-my-head thing."

The waiter came back with Merlin's cigarettes and drink. Mordred used his magic to light the cigarette for him. Thoughtful of him to keep Merlin from having to show his hand even in front of other magic users. Merlin took a long drag.

"Arthur Pendragon seems to have gone missing. He was supposed to meet us at the Fyrien Hotel. That journalist you recommended to me pointed us in that direction."

Mordred's eyes tightened marginally, one of the few facial expressions he allowed himself. Merlin winced, wondering if maybe he'd tipped his hand too soon. Or was he not supposed to meet with that journalist? Whatever. Mordred should have left better notes if he'd meant anything else.

"Have you heard anything?"

 _There's to be a boxing event tomorrow evening. If rumor is to be believed, 'a dragon' will be present._ Mordred reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a leaflet, handing it to Merlin. It noted the location and time, and underneath, in old script that could only be read by magic, it mentioned the dragon.

"How subtle."

 _Indeed._ Mordred glanced around the room, his gaze seemingly far off. Not atypical of him -- sometimes he'd drift off even while they were fucking. Merlin tucked the flier into his own coat pocket. Presumably Mordred didn't plan on attending.

 _I want to warn you_ , Mordred thought at him, and Merlin flinched at the obvious worried tone. Sometimes Mordred seemed to care about Merlin beyond the magic, and that was worse than any death threat Mordred could throw at him. There was nothing Mordred could do to really harm Merlin, but making Merlin's life a living hell wasn't outside the realm of possibility.

"Fine. Warn me about Morgana and Morgause? Too late, I already know. Warn me about Arthur Pendragon? Too late, he's already on my case."

_There are rumors that Morgause got her hands on a certain artifact. I believe Morgause will be attempting magic that she wishes to showcase tomorrow, at that event. But the magic is outside of her scope. She is not as powerful as Nimueh was._

Merlin's entire body tensed, though he kept his face carefully blank. Mordred did the mental equivalent of a sigh and added, _She will come for you. You are the only one who has successfully performed this magic._

Right. Of course. The implication of what Mordred was saying scared Merlin to his core. There was no way he could let Mordred know of that fact though. "Don't worry, I think I can handle Morgause. She's not anywhere near as persuasive as--"

 _Do not speak her name out loud._ Mordred glared. _You must not tempt her to haunt us._

Merlin snuffed out his cigarette and took his first sip of his drink. "Moonshine," liquor made of magic, under the light of the moon, had a very distinct flavor that many of the high class still coveted. Morgause and Mordred made a fortune distributing the stuff, and Merlin had no doubt that all the local politicians partook in it. 

Something being illegal never stopped the rich and powerful from doing it, after all.

 _Please take care of yourself. Morgause is not as forgiving as I am._ Mordred seemed to hesitate for a moment, then stood up and moved to stand beside Merlin. "You don't see yourself the way I do," he whispered into Merlin's ear.

It wasn't a surprise that Mordred kissed him. Their magic twisted together, coiling tight around them. Merlin thought he could feel Mordred's magic trying to drag Merlin's magic into his own soul, to force Merlin to claim him. Merlin considered for a moment just letting him. They did it often enough in private, and who cared if the world saw them together? Gwen was, after all, presumably going to shack up with Arthur once they rescued him, and then Merlin would be alone again, and --

No. This was like with Morgana. Merlin forcefully yanked his magic back to himself and threw up a buffer to protect himself from Modred. Magical resonance aside, Mordred had nothing that could entice Merlin, and Morgana had proven what a bad idea it was to get involved with somebody from the gangs.

Besides, at the very least, he should wait until all of this was over. Merlin couldn't afford to have his loyalties pulled away from the case, and giving Mordred even the smallest piece of himself could backfire enormously.

Mordred huffed: his strange, quiet way of laughing. _I will see you in a few days, Emrys._

Merlin didn't bother watching Mordred leave. The atmosphere in the joint was really fitting for his current mood, he found, and the moonshine was making him even more mellow. There was a reason, he told himself, why he had sworn off relationships years ago. Just because Gwen was probably going to hook up with Arthur didn't mean he had to start wishing for something more permanent himself.

"Is this spot taken?" 

Merlin startled and spilled the rest of his drink. He glanced over his shoulder, and was surprised to see Gwaine. Unlike the last time Merlin had run into him, Gwaine was looking far more casual: his shirt was unbuttoned, his trousers seemed loose. He certainly seemed more relaxed than Arthur in his suits or Mordred in his more flamboyant "gangster" clothes.

"Oh dear. Let me buy you another," Gwaine said. He flashed a smile. "By the way, I saw you necking with a man earlier. Seems we have a few more things in common than I thought?"

"We weren't necking. It was just a kiss. But--"

Right. Just a few moments ago, Merlin had told himself he wasn't going to do anything else while the case was on. But Gwaine didn't have magic -- Merlin checked again just to be sure -- and he was so much _safer_ than Mordred. And Merlin genuinely liked Gwaine.

"In case you're still undecided: let me assure you, with me, just a kiss won't be enough." He even winked, in such an exaggerated way that Merlin couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah, sure, why not." Merlin finished his moonshine, pocketed the rest of the cigarettes, and followed Gwaine towards the exit. "Just as long as we don't talk business."

"Not to worry! Tonight, I'm all pleasure."

That was an attitude Merlin could support. He had lived his life so far without denying himself the fleeting pleasures. No need to start now.

* * *

His magic was filling the room, trying to escape. Or maybe it was trying to capture this feeling of Gwaine holding Merlin down and fucking into him.

He could already feel his eyes blurring with tears, and it felt _good_.

The resonance wasn't as strong as with Morgana or Mordred, and it didn't twist at him like touching Morgause's magic would do. Gwaine didn't have a single magical bone in his body. Yet somehow, it was a steady buzz, gentle and comforting and despite how wild their actions were, Merlin was starting to feel... warm. Safe. This was the buzz he'd been feeling these past few days. Now that he was surrounded by it, Merlin didn't know how he hadn't realized it right from the start.

Something had to be wrong with him, if his magic was conspiring to make him horny all the damn time.

"God, you feel amazing," Gwaine said, near breathless. Merlin answered him with a hungry kiss. Why hadn't he tried this the last time? How had he failed to notice this strange quality in Gwaine, in all the times he'd brushed his magic against him? He needed this, this kind of release that came without any sort of guilt at all.

It was nice, one in a while, to sleep with somebody not out for Merlin's magic.

* * *

Merlin woke to the sound of a typewriter clacking away. Clack. Clack. Clack.

He pried open his eyes and saw Gwaine, wearing only his drawers, sitting at a desk. Presumably typing. Merlin yawned, stretched, staring at the overhead lights. He hadn't noticed it when they'd come in -- he'd been just a bit too distracted -- but all of Gwaine's apartment was extremely modern. The overhead lighting was run with electricity, not gas, and one of the open doors to the side opened up to an indoor bathroom, which hinted at the newest type of plumbing. Merlin still had to go to the communal baths if he wanted to get clean without using magic. He was willing to bet that the kitchen had a proper refrigerator as well, not the make-shift icebox Merlin kept cold with magic. 

All of which was fairly extravagant for a journalist. Probably meant that Gwaine had a side buisness somewhere, but who was Merlin to judge a man for that. 

Merlin made a show of sitting up and stretching.

"Good Morning," Gwaine said, absent-minded. He didn't even turn around to look at Merlin, which was almost insulting after last night. Merlin got up and moved over to press his naked body against Gwaine's back. His magic hummed in contentment.

Half of the page Gwaine was typing on was already filled with words.

Greed and graft are the twin spears of corruption underpinning this city. A.D.A Pendragon says he's going to bring justice to Camelot, but flashy speeches don't stop business as usual. Since Tristan de Bois's death the unequal enforcement of the law has only gotten worse. 

Governor Pendragon has yet to show any evidence that the "Ygraine Act" has lowered crime rates, improved the economy, or increased the standard of living among citizens. In fact, the evidence seems to point in the opposite direction.

Science, the golden alternative to magic, is on its own not nearly as effective in combating disease, as seen by the devastating outbreak of influenza in 1915. The setback to our national defense in the recent conflict with Germany was near catastrophic. Enemy magic decimated our troops by the hundreds, and only by the grace of our British allies did our side prevail, but at great cost. 

All this because one woman died in a tragic accident. 

Merlin's eyebrows went up. "Who are you writing that for?"

"Not the Camelot Tribune, that's for sure," Gwaine said. He stopped typing and craned his neck to look at Merlin, a faint smile lingering on his lips. "This is more for myself than anything. I doubt any newspaper in this town would be willing to publish anything so blatantly anti-Pendragon."

Merlin nodded, trying to think of any newspaper in town that wasn't owned by one of Pendragon's friends. "Maybe the Druid Herald?"

"I write for them occasionally," Gwaine said. "Maybe you've read a few of my articles?"

"I don't usually read the Herald, sorry," Merlin answered. "The police are too suspicious of me already without me buying a blatantly anti-Prohibition paper."

"But you are anti-Prohibition, aren't you?"

"Well, yes." Considering where he'd met Gwaine, Merlin doubted admitting it would be a problem. "But I've been trying to make sure Arthur Pendragon doesn't find out. He's breathing down my neck about it."

"Oh yeah, I saw you with the Princess the other day."

That startled a laugh out of Merlin. "Princess?"

"Yes, I used to have to deal with him regularly. He gets right prissy, always demanding things be exactly how he wants them. Got so tiring, after a while I decided it wasn't worth it."

Merlin laughed again, then leaned down to kiss Gwaine, who was only happy to oblige. 

"Do you have time for another round?" Gwaine asked when they pulled apart.

"Depends on how long that round lasts." Merlin glanced at the clock on the desk. "I should leave in half an hour?"

"Oh, plenty of time for me to thank you for last night."

"Thank me? You were doing most of the work!"

"Right. And it was _my_ magic that was basically stroking both of us from the inside out."

Merlin flinched away from Gwaine. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on now. The first time we met you were marking cards with magic. Freya was terrified of you, something she reserves for sorcerers. You've molested me with your magic three times now. And that bar we were at last night, you can't even get in without magic. The only reason I was allowed inside because I flirted with the owner. Not to mention, I do have some inside sources that have mentioned a thing or two about you. So don't tell me you don't have magic, I won't believe you."

Gwaine's eyes softened and his mouth curled into a smile. "Hey, don't worry. I'm against prohibition. I'm not going to turn you in."

Merlin sat down on the bed again. "Right. Right. Um. Sorry, I just-- How?"

"How what?"

"How did you, uh. Sense my magic? I mean, I've checked you three times now, you don't have magic at all."

"Oh, so you weren't trying to grope me with your magic?" Gwaine smiled and stretched just a bit.

"No!" Merlin hoped he looked at scandalized as he felt. That was just _wrong_ , on so many levels.

His strong reaction seemed to have startled Gwaine. "Really? I have to tell you, it felt really, really nice."

"But that still doesn't explain how you felt it in the first place! You shouldn't be able to!"

Gwaine shrugged. "I've kind of always been able to do that? Well... my mother was a sorceress. And after my father left, she married a druid. And my half-brother, he's got some power as well. So I've been kind of surrounded by magic all my life. I can't so much as light a match, but I sure as hell know magic when I see it. Or feel it."

"That makes no sense. Magic doesn't work like that."

"Are you sure? Because that's how it works for me."

Merlin hesitantly let his magic touch Gwaine's aura, again, and Gwaine groaned loudly. "Shit, it feels like moonshine through my veins."

"You still don't have magic," Merlin said.

"And I can still feel you groping me. You going to do something about it, or just leave me hanging?"

Fine. Merlin could adapt to this. It really wasn't anything weirder than anything else in his life. Besides, he was definitely up for another round with Gwaine.

* * *

Gwen said nothing when he came in to the office late, though she did comment that he should learn to tie his ties properly if he wanted to hide his hickeys. She didn't bother trying to hide her disapproval, which Merlin thought was just a tad unfair. He'd had to put up with Mordred just so he could find Arthur. He deserved a reward.

He waved Modred's leaflet at her, and Gwen quickly snatched it out of the air.

"Oh! I thought you were going to forget about Arthur. But where did you get this? I hadn't heard anything about this."

No, nobody without magic would know of it, that was for sure. Unfortunately, the event wasn't until evening, and the leaflet included a very strong warning to not show up early.

That left them both restless. Gwen ended up going out somewhere, and Merlin called Mordred again to get a little bit more information. He got passed on to somebody else instead, who knew just a little bit more about the boxing event. Merlin took copious notes and hoped that, once they'd rescued him, Arthur could use the information to shut the place down.

Gwen came back just after dark. "Let's go. I got a good look at the area it's in. Lots of warehouses, but I think I can find it."

Merlin had no problem letting Gwen lead the way. They took a cab to the general vicinity and then had to try to make their way through the maze of same-looking buildings. He hated not being able to use his magic to navigate, but it was too dangerous now. They couldn't afford to tip anybody off about their arrival.

Gwen stopped in front of a fairly nondescript looking door, set into a warehouse that was just as nondescript as the rest of them. "Here."

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Merlin asked, fairly dubious. Gwen's lips curled into a frown; she pushed against the door, which opened into a long, dark hallway lit only by a few lanterns. A few people were walking ahead of them, and the further in they got, the more obvious the sounds of cheering were.

"Yes, it's the right place," Gwen said as they came to a ticketing booth. They both paid the entrance fee, a whopping two dollars each. Once they were past the bouncer, she added, "Look, it's not my fault your sense of direction is absolutely abysmal, but could you please trust me sometimes? Unless you wanted a _different_ illegal boxing ring?"

No, a different one wouldn't do, thought Merlin, as they stepped into the crowd around the main event. It was an unwelcome sight. Merlin was disgustingly familiar with these types of operations. Kanen had recruited from Merlin's neighborhood, always using the locals as warm-up for his up-and-coming champions. It had taken a long time to find proof of Kanen's illegal activities, and Merlin still knew far too much about that particular subset of the criminal underworld. He'd much rather deal only in illegal magics -- they were a lot safer than boxing.

At least this ring wasn't run by Kanen's gang. Merlin's call earlier in the day had revealed that this ring was run by a newcomer, Hengist, who had ties to one or the other minor gangs in Camelot. 

This venue was a lot nicer than some of the other ones Merlin had seen, and could probably be converted into a magical arena if necessary. The noisy spectators crowded up against the iron-barred ring, everybody trying to get a better view of the men fighting inside.

Arthur.

Only two days had passed since they'd spoken and yet Arthur looked remarkably different. In court, Arthur wore impeccable suits with not a single thread out of place. Even at the police station or out investigating, Arthur had appeared professional.

But not now. Right now, Arthur was shirtless, bruised, and bloody, clear to see even in the shoddy lighting. His hands were haphazardly bandaged in stained brown strips; whether that was Arthur's blood or his opponent's was anybody's guess. A lucky hit by the opponent sent Arthur slamming into the cage wall, and the crowd cheered.

"Oh my god," Gwen said, barely audible. Merlin reached for her wrist and squeezed lightly. Whatever happened, he'd protect her. If things went sour, Gwen would be his first priority, not Arthur Pendragon. 

They wove their way through the crowd, eyeing all the possible exits. The door they'd come in through was guarded by two men with fists the size of Merlin's head. There were two other doors, one that said it lead to the restrooms and the other had the words "Staff Only" written on it.

The crowd suddenly changed the tone of its cheering, and Merlin's attention was drawn back to the cage. Arthur's opponent, a large man whose face was obscured by a black mask, sprawled on the floor. For a moment it looked like he was out for the count, and then he was up again. He was up, and had a surprising amount of energy -- he was so fast he completely blind-sided Arthur and sent him knocking into the cage wall again.

It was hard to see properly, but something was off about the way Arthur's opponent moved. Merlin tapped on somebody's shoulder and asked, "Who's the man in black?"

The person was gracious enough to yell, "Tonight's favorite! Tristan de Bois!"

Merlin desperately hoped he'd misheard.

Gwen tugged on his arm. "Did he say Tristan de Bois?"

"Yes?"

Gwen's panicked look matched how Merlin felt. "Merlin! That can't be! He's _dead_."

Not so much that it _couldn't be, but rather that it shouldn't_ be. Mordred's warning flashed through Merlin's mind: _Morgause will be attempting magic that she wishes to showcase tomorrow. But the magic is outside of her scope._

That explained the fighter's strange way of moving, and how he managed to seem so unfazed by Arthur's punches. Merlin sent his magic out, slowly, carefully, and nearly doubled over in pain the moment it touched Tristan. Shit. Arthur had no chance of beating Tristan. No matter how long he held on, eventually, Arthur's stamina would give out.

Merlin tried to unravel the magic keeping Tristan moving, but it was strong. And it had a familiar touch to it, a spark that made a part of him ache. He kept working at it, ignoring Gwen's concerned questions and the burn behind his eyes. He whispered words to a spell he never learned but would now never forget.

It was a slow process, but Tristan's movements started becoming even more erratic. His feet seemed to thud loudly, even in the dull roar the crowd produced, and he dodged fewer and fewer of Arthur's attacks. His blows didn't send Arthur reeling for nearly as long, and even the crowd could tell that the tide of the battle was turning.

There. One more magical tap would probably do it.

He turned his focus on Arthur. Arthur's shoulders were hunched, his breathing a lot shallower than it had been half an hour ago. His body shone with sweat, dulled only by the trickle of blood from Arthur's lip and nose. It was obvious even from Merlin's vantage point that Arthur would be sporting a shiner come morning. He could barely stand upright.

Merlin let his magic flow over Arthur to give him the energy and power to knock Tristan out for good.

The magical feedback slammed into Merlin, stronger than when he'd been unwinding Tristan, stronger than Mordred's strange pull, and stronger than Morgana's attempts at dominance. Merlin's body vibrated from it. When Arthur landed that last, fatal punch on Tristan, Merlin felt his soul tear open.

He pulled his magic back as quickly as he could and collapsed to his knees. Gwen shouted a distressed, "Merlin!" and tried to pull him back up. It was useless. He was a dead weight against her, still too shaken up by the sheer power of the resonance he got from Arthur. He had to try to calm himself, to find some way to anchor his magic, and all he could think of was the soothing sensation Gwaine had given him just that morning.

God. He thought he'd never feel anybody resonate as strongly as Morgana.

He'd been painfully wrong.

* * *

Merlin snapped his eyes open, unable to ignore Gwen shaking his shoulders. "Where's Arthur?" were the first words out of his mouth.

Gwen sighed loudly and wrapped her arms around him. "Oh thank god. I thought something terrible must have happened."

"No, really, where--"

Gwen stood and pulled Merlin up with her. She motioned toward the door labeled "Staff Only," which had a thin trail of blood leading towards it. 

"They took him in there. Look, I'm not sure we can sneak past without anybody seeing us. Can you make us invisible or something?"

Merlin reached into his magic reserves and found them heavily depleted. No, invisibility wasn't happening anytime soon. He tried again, this time going for the mild aversion spell. It worked, just barely -- it wouldn't hold for long.

"Don't--" Merlin gasped for air, "don't look anyone in the eyes."

"Right."

The door was thankfully unlocked; they probably expected the two guards to keep people out, but they couldn't prevent what they didn't realize was happening.

The two of them stumbled along, each breath coming harder than the last. Merlin was thankful for Gwen, who wasn't complaining despite the fact that she was practically carrying him. He wouldn't trade her for anybody, he thought. Forget Arthur -- oh, forget his delicious aura and the way it had pinged into his very core, forget how for that brief moment, all the magic in the air had aligned itself perfectly -- forget Arthur, if necessary, Merlin would bring the building down around them to wonderful, steady Gwen, who always looked out for him despite his recklessness.

He was getting a bit melodramatic, maybe.

The first two doors they tried led to empty offices, and by the third one Merlin could tell that Gwen was having trouble supporting him. "You should leave me," he told her, "find Arthur and come back for me afterwards."

She shook her head. "And risk somebody finding you? You can barely even stand, how are you supposed to defend yourself?"

She clapped a hand over his mouth before he could protest, just as somebody turned the corner and walked past them. His magic, hanging on by a thin thread, managed to keep the person from seeing them.

Right. Maybe he'd been a bit inattentive. They kept going, Gwen's breathing quickening when they came across a trail of blood on the floor. Most of it was dry, but a few fresh drops dotted the floor as well. This hallway was used often.

Merlin stumbled when Gwen stopped abruptly; the door in front of them creaked open. They both held completely still, relying on the spell to keep them undetected.

Merlin gaped when Gwaine peeked his head out of the doorway. "Gwaine?" he blurt out, too stunned to remember to be silent.

Gwaine's head whipped around and he focused in right on them. "Merlin? What are you doing here?"

"What about you?" Merlin didn't recall having discussed this with Gwaine that morning. "Are you following me?"

"What? No! I'm trying to find leads for my story." Gwaine stepped closer, with his arms outstretched as if to take Merlin, but Gwen pointedly backed away.

"Merlin? Who is this?"

"Oh, Gwaine Orkney. Remember, I told you about him. That journalist I went to meet. I think we can trust him."

Gwen didn't look wholly convinced, but there was no denying that she was too tired to keep propping Merlin up. She nodded at Gwaine, allowing him to get close. Merlin let Gwaine wrap his arm around him and help prop him up. The usual resonance Merlin's magic had towards Gwaine was faint, muted by Merlin's own exhaustion.

"What happened to you?" Gwaine asked.

"I had to dissolve a fight. Well. Dissolve an undead person." 

Gwaine sent a confused look to Gwen, and she shook her head at him. "Later. We have to find Arthur first."

"He's probably in the locker rooms. I was in there earlier. I saw the cages they set up."

Gwaine started leading them down another hall, following the blood trail. Merlin's own head was starting to get fuzzy, and it was a relief when the last tendril of the aversion spell slipped away from him. 

"We're visible now," he mumbled, just as they pushed into the locker rooms.

The stench was overwhelming. If Merlin hadn't been clinging to Gwaine, he probably would have collapsed immediately. As it was, the urge to vomit rose, and he wasn't the only one, judging from the way Gwen covered her mouth and nose with her hands.

Lined up next to the lockers was a large cage, probably once meant for some sort of large circus animal. Arthur, completely bloodied and bruised, sat inside. His breathed heavily and his eyes were starting to swell. He would definitely be sporting a shiner unless he got some healing magic in him. 

Gwen rushed over to the cage door and rattled the lock. "Arthur, Arthur. We're here for you."

Arthur opened an eye and let out a pained gasp. "Guinevere? No, you shouldn't be here."

"It's fine, we're going to rescue you." She pulled out her lockpick and tried to work the lock. One of the things she did particularly well. She once told Merlin that she had picked up the skill from her father, who often had to unlock items pawned at his shop.

Gwaine shook his head. "That won't work. It's locked with magic."

Arthur startled at his voice. "How did you get here? All of you, get out of here. If Hengist catches you, you'll end up in here with me."

Gwen cried out in frustration and banged the padlock against the cage bars. "How do we... Merlin, is there anything you can do?"

At that, Arthur's eyes widened, but Merlin was too tired to even try to come up with some sort of explanation for Arthur. He was just about ready to tell Arthur to just deal with it, that he couldn't be bothered to go out of his way to make Arthur feel safe, when they heard the door creak open.

Gwen immediately spun around and gasped loudly. When Merlin twisted just enough to see who it was, he found himself sliding to his knees. As if things weren't complicated enough.

Standing by the door was Lance, wearing the same uniform as Hengist's guards. He'd cut his hair since the last time Merlin had seen him, and a thick layer of scruff covered his chin. Superficially, he looked good.

"Lance what are you--" Gwen started, then shook her head. "No, it doesn't matter. Can you help us get Arthur out of here?"

Lance didn't hesitate and crossed the room towards the cage. He touched the padlock, brushing hands with Merlin briefly. "I have a key, but I don't know if it'll work on this. They keep the, uh, valuables under more protection than just a lock."

Lance gently pushed Merlin aside to get a closer look; Merlin swayed and fell backwards against Gwaine's legs. 

"Merlin, you all right?" Gwaine placed a hand on the back of Merlin's neck, and that, fuck. Merlin's magic latched onto him, sucking up the deep calm, and then somehow it _jumped_ , grabbed at whatever it was inside Arthur that felt so damned good. Gwaine's hand squeezed lightly and Arthur stumbled back against the wall, and maybe that was a bad sign but Merlin felt his magic getting a second wind, just enough to fumble with the lock and melt it off. 

Lance shouted in surprise, and Merlin had the decency to feel just a bit sorry that he'd accidentally burned Lance's fingers in the process.

Gwaine pulled Merlin backwards so that the door could swing open, and Gwen rushed past them all to hug Arthur. Merlin didn't miss the pained look that crossed Lance's face.

"We need to hurry. The next patrol should be close behind me," Lance said, his voice wavering just the slightest bit. "Merlin, can you walk?"

Merlin tried to stand but ended up stumbling against the cage again. Gwaine pulled him upright, his grip tight around Merlin's arms. "Here, I'll carry him. Princess, you okay?"

"Yes, I think--" Arthur hissed in pain as he stood up, bracing against Gwen, "I think I'll manage."

Lance looked between all of them for a moment before stepping closer to Gwaine. "I'll help you." 

The two of them maneuvered Merlin until he was pressed against Gwaine's back and then lifted off the ground completely. Merlin wanted to protest, but his magic was sighing in contentment at the wonderful buffer Gwaine was providing. And when, as they were exiting the room, Arthur brushed against Merlin? That was the best feeling in the world. He closed his eyes and just enjoyed the ride.

* * *

Merlin never asked how they made it back to his apartment, but somehow they all crowded into it. Lance said that it was the safest, and nobody disagreed. Merlin thought that his apartment was too obvious, but he wasn't in any position to argue.

He had never gotten around to folding up his bed, so he, Gwaine and Gwen were sitting on it, with Lance and Arthur in two chairs they had pulled in from the kitchen. A tension hummed through the room, clearly delineated by the distance between everybody. Merlin was almost certain that if he'd been in better shape, neither Gwaine nor Gwen would have been sitting this close to him.

Didn't matter. He leaned against Gwaine and tried desperately to recapture that calm that Gwaine seemed to give him, but somehow his magic was now just sliding off of him. It seemed that Gwaine wasn't in the mood.

"So, can we clear up a few things? Who is _he_ ," Arthur pointed to Lance, "and why is _Gwaine_ here?"

Merlin felt Gwaine shrug. "I was investigating. A source said they'd seen Tristan de Bois alive, and yep, there he was."

"Is that any of your business?"

"Oh, don't start with that, Princess. You don't dictate how I do my job."

"No, but I'm the one who has to deal with the aftermath. You and your sensationalist articles!"

Gwaine shifted forward, causing Merlin to slip sideways and jostle against Gwen. 

"Enough, both of you!" Gwen shouted. "I don't care what's going on between you two! We're all tired, Merlin is completely drained, and Arthur, you need medical attention. We can't deal with this the way we are now."

Gwen gently slid away from Merlin. "Look, there's blankets in the linen closet. Lance and Arthur can sleep with Merlin, and Gwaine and I can use the cushions as pillows. It'll be tight, but… I don't think we should split up right now."

Lance nodded in agreement, but Arthur immediately protested. "Guinevere, you don't want to sleep next to Gwaine. He doesn't know how to treat a lady."

"As if you're any better, Princess."

"Guinevere deserves proper respect, not just--"

Lance coughed. "Arthur, you're injured. I don't think you should sleep on the floor. But if it bothers you so much, I'll take the floor and Gwaine can take my spot on the bed. If that's all right with you, Gwen?"

Gwen looked as exasperated as Merlin felt. She threw up her arms in surrender. "Fine. I don't care. As long as there's quiet and we can all get some sleep."

That probably wasn't the result that Arthur was going for, if the glare he gave Gwaine was any indication, but at least it was a compromise they could both work with.

Merlin was just glad that he didn't have to sit up anymore. He closed his eyes, and tried to sleep.

Yet despite how tired he was, his body refused to relent. He was hyper aware of all the other people in his apartment, moving things around. The mattress shifted underneath him, and he opened his eyes marginally to see Gwaine lying down to his right.

"For what it's worth," Gwaine whispered, "I like this spot more." He leaned in close and brushed his lips against Merlin for just a brief moment. Then the mattress shifted again, this time on the other side.

It was far too tight for three grown men to lay comfortably; Arthur ended up pressed against Merlin. Merlin resisted the temptation to reach out with his magic. It was bad enough that he could feel Arthur's breath against his ear.

"Thank you for coming for me," Arthur said, so quietly that Merlin almost thought he was already dreaming.

Arthur's breathing soon evened out, and Merlin found that it was easier to relax now, cocooned as he was in their warmth. He let his head slide against Gwaine's shoulder while his leg slowly extended until it crossed over Arthur's.

Merlin had no problem sleeping after that.

* * *

Merlin woke up to the sound of yelling. He groaned and pulled the pillow over his head, which muffled the noise somewhat but didn't drown it out entirely.

He felt a lot better, now that he had gotten rest and he knew that Arthur was safe. God. Arthur. He pushed his magic out to feel for him -- in the kitchen, with Gwaine.

Ah, that felt just as good now as it had last night. Arthur and Gwaine seemed to have opposite resonances that created the most wonderful vibrations across Merlin's own aura. He wondered what it would be like with both of them touching him at once. Arthur leaving hard and fast bursts of pleasure on him, Gwaine buffeting and spreading that pleasure throughout his entire body. 

Gwaine would probably be up for it; he seemed the open minded sort. But Arthur was probably more traditional. Not to mention his flirtations with Gwen, and the fact that he didn't seem to like Gwaine much.

Didn't matter, this was his fantasy, he could think about whoever he wanted. Merlin let his hand move down to rest on his cock, already half-hard, and--

"Good, you're awake," Gwaine said, striding into the room. 

Merlin groaned and turned onto his stomach. "How did you know?"

"I told you. I can feel..." Gwaine trailed off as Arthur followed him into the room.

"Feel what? And don't think we're done discussing this matter." 

Merlin sat up, pulled the pillow into his lap, and glared at both of them. "Are you going to yell at each other all the time? It made sense yesterday when we were all jumpy from the fight, but come on."

The two of them shrugged. When neither made another move to speak, Merlin looked around the room. "Where are Gwen and Lance?"

"Gwen is buying breakfast and trying to find a doctor. Lance snuck out after her, said he had to make a few calls."

Merlin's eyebrows narrowed. "Some calls? Won't Hengist or whoever be looking for him by now?"

"We tried to tell him that, but…"

"Yeah, that's kind of typical Lance." Merlin sighed and righted himself. 

He wasn't sure what he was going to do with everybody. It seemed that things were falling apart around him. What was supposed to be simple case had now evolved into something a lot darker. He shuddered, remembering what it felt to be touching Tristan de Bois's reanimated corpse. That kind of magic shouldn't be in anybody's hands. The last time he'd encountered something like that--

Fuck. It figured that Morgause wouldn't do anything by halves. Merlin wished Mordred would just go deal with her, instead of always throwing clues at Merlin and letting him do the dirty work. 

Arthur must have noticed Merlin's sudden change in demeanor. "What? Is Lance up to something?"

"Lance? Not beyond what he's been up to for the past year or so. But he's a good person. And he'd never do anything that would endanger somebody else." Before Arthur could try to question him further, Merlin added, "What's up with you two? You seem to know each other fairly well."

Gwaine and Arthur both looked sheepish for a moment. Their gazes met for a second, then they quickly diverted their glances. 

"It's in the past. Don't worry about it," Gwaine quickly said. "The princess and I will control ourselves."

"It might help if you stopped calling me that! I didn't like it then, and I don't like it now!"

And they were right back at it. Merlin watched them bickering, and with a jolt, he realized something: they were enjoying themselves. Gwaine was smirking pretty widely, and Arthur, for all his protests, seemed to be having a hard time controlling his grin.

They _liked_ each other.

Well, wasn't that just throwing a wrench into things. Maybe the two of them _would_ be willing to jump into bed with each other. Just not with Merlin as well. There went that fantasy.

Merlin groaned and burrowed under the sheets again. "If you're just going to flirt with each other, leave me alone!"

"What? We weren't--" Arthur stopped short with a strangled shout. Gwaine must have kicked him or something.

"Like I said, it's in the past. And good riddance." Gwaine sat down next to Merlin and leaned in close. "You're a lot better than Arthur anyway."

That got Merlin to laugh. Before Arthur could ask what that was about, somebody knocked on the front door. Arthur went to open it; Gwen, with Lance in tow, stepped inside. She had that look on her face that made Merlin want to get on his knees and apologize for whatever shameful thing he'd done. At least this time, it seemed more aimed at Lance than at him.

"Was nobody going to mention to Lance how dangerous it is for him to be walking around by himself?"

"I was asleep!" Merlin said quickly, to absolve himself of any blame. He peeked out from under the covers and saw Arthur looking embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't sure it was my place. Lance assured me he had a good reason."

Gwen glared. "It's only lucky that I caught him coming out of that general store. Otherwise, who knows where he'd have gone off to?"

Ah, that was the crux of the matter. For all that Gwen had been angry at Lance when he'd left, it seemed like she didn't want him to disappear again. And though she hadn't spared him more than a few glances, the way she was keeping just within his personal space right now… Merlin sighed and wondered how this would play into her budding relationship with Arthur. Though if Arthur still had feeling for Gwaine, or Gwaine had them for Arthur, or… something.

Merlin decided he'd been right to avoid proper relationships. They just caused drama, and everybody else in the room was proof of that. He gently reached out to both Gwaine and Arthur again. Yes, lots of drama, no matter how good it felt in the moment.

"Merlin, move over so that I can sit. And Arthur, should you even be moving this much?"

They all rearranged themselves to Gwen's specifications, Merlin sitting up and giving the other two more room. Now that he'd rested, he did feel a lot better, and although Arthur still had his fair share of bruises, he seemed to be doing a lot better, too. Much better than he should be.

Merlin's fists clenched briefly, and he tentatively reached out with his magic once again. A hint of magic lingered on Arthur, Merlin's own brand of it, but slightly different. Merlin's eyes slid over to Gwaine, and he hoped that he was wrong. He pulled on Gwaine's aura.

The effect was instantaneous. Merlin could _see_ his own magic binding Arthur and Gwaine together, letting Gwaine's magical calm smooth over the wounds that Arthur was carrying.

Gwaine startled. "What are you--"

Merlin shook his head, and Gwaine cut himself short. Arthur didn't even seem to notice that he'd been passively healed overnight, helped along by Gwaine and Merlin's own subconscious.

It seemed that even his own magic thought that Arthur and Gwaine belonged with each other. Wonderful.

Gwen opened her satchel and pulled out a notebook and some papers, among them the flyer to the fight last night. Both Lance and Arthur cringed when they saw it. 

"I think it's time we pool the information we have. No holding back, please, because right now, none of us can afford to be in the dark."

And yet none of them said a word. Finally, Gwen pointed to Arthur. "You go first. Tell us how you got kidnapped."

"All right. There's not much to tell though. I got your call about meeting at that hotel. Uncle Agravaine caught me just as I was leaving and asked where I was heading. After that…" Arthur frowned. "I got into a taxi cab, and I think I heard some strange words. I woke up inside that cage."

"Where the words _swefe_?" Gwaine asked. Gwaine asked, making Merlin give him a sharp look. Non-magical folk didn't usually learn the spellwords, even those who grew up among druids. 

Arthur shrugged. "I don't remember. After a while, the leader of that group, um…"

"Hengist," Lance provided.

"Right, him. Hengist showed up, told me that I was going to be the main attraction. That magic users were dying to see me knocked down a peg or two. They had me do three fights that first day, and I think they were surprised that I won." Arthur smirked a bit at that. "I do boxing in my spare time. You need discipline for that, and most of the people they set against me were common thugs at best."

Gwaine actually laughed. "Only you would brag about something like that."

"I thought bragging was your territory," Arthur shot back. "Anyway, everything was going fine until that final fight last night. That guy had inhuman strength, inhuman stamina."

Now Lance shook his head. "Not inhuman. Just… unhuman. That was Tristan de Bois, Arthur. Morgause somehow brought him back to life."

Merlin didn't bother to pretend to be surprised, although Arthur flinched. 

"I heard them announce his name, but I thought it was just a man in disguise."

Lance shared what he knew. "This past year… I've been working within Morgause's organization, trying to find enough evidence to bring her down. It wasn't easy to gain her trust. I think she must have suspected me anyway, because she had me start working for Hengist instead."

"The past year?" Gwen's voice was brittle.

Fuck. Gwen could probably do the math here. A year since Lance disappeared. A year that he'd been working for Morgause. A year since Lance had made Merlin promise to not reveal his whereabouts to Gwen.

"You've been here the entire time?"

"I-- Yes." Lance stared down at his own wrists. "I didn't want to endanger you."

"Do you at least have something to show for it?" Now Gwen's voice was downright frosty.

"I'm pretty sure she had Tristan de Bois killed. Using him to test her new magic was just a bonus. She said that he was getting too close to discovering… something. But I was never really privy to any information regarding gang politics."

"Ah, that's where I come in," Gwaine said. "I have a few fairly accurate sources inside the gangs. I was at that event yesterday trying to witness it for myself, but…" He glanced at Arthur, then shrugged. "Well, it explains a lot."

"What?"

"Morgause Grayson is closely tied to Agravaine de Bois."

"No!" Arthur immediately shouted. "He wouldn't! He'd never! Agravaine supports my father!"

"Oh, grow up, Princess. You act like politicians are all clean and pure, and yet the corruption in this city is rampant."

"Agravaine is a good man!"

Arthur turned to face the rest of them. "Go, on, tell them! You've met him!"

Merlin shrugged. "The one time I met him, I thought he was an ass."

"He didn't leave a good first impression," Gwen added. "And… that hotel we were supposed to meet you at? It's owned by your uncle, and there was strong magic going on there."

Arthur's eyes narrowed. "How would you know that?"

An awkward silence passed between them. Anything they said now would implicate Merlin. Honestly, Merlin didn't know if he cared anymore, and he was about to just reveal himself, when Lance interjected, "I told Merlin. I left him a message there. Hotel Fyrien-- that's Morgause's headquarters."

Gwaine was nodding. "That's what my sources said too. One of my magic-using friends-- and no, I won't tell you their name--said that Morgause has something there she doesn't want anybody to find."

And this would have been where Merlin spoke up and told them all what it was she was hiding, but Merlin didn't want to deal with that. They knew enough for now. All that mattered was that they stopped Morgause before she put her plan into action; they didn't need any more information that they could use to question Merlin.

"Wait, there's something I don't understand," Arthur suddenly said. "Why was Merlin framed for the murder?"

"Probably to distract you from what she's really doing," Gwen suggested. "I talked to Elyan. He says that there have been a lot more weapons purchases in the past couple of days. Whatever Morgause is planning, it's huge."

Merlin stood up and paced to the kitchen entryway. "We need to know where she is now. That's the only way to put a stop to her."

Lance nodded. "She hasn't been in the city for a while. I do know where some of the weapons caches are though, maybe if we can trace those…"

"Good idea." Arthur looked at all of them. "Guinevere, Lance, you two should follow up on the weapons. I think you're both most familiar with them, and to be frank, I don't think I should know too much about this. I don't think I could turn a blind eye."

Gwen didn't look particularly thrilled by the suggestion, but she nodded.

"Gwaine, you probably should contact your, uh, sources, and see what they have to say."

"Got it, your highness." Despite the sarcastic title, Gwaine actually seemed serious this time.

"Merlin and I will head back to my office and investigate my uncle."

"Why am I going with you?"

"Because I don't trust you enough to let you out of my sight," Arthur declared. That stung, just a little, but Merlin put on a grin and pretended to be amused. 

"All right then. We're burning daylight. Let's get going!"

Lance, Gwen, and Gwaine left first; Merlin changed into clean clothes and wondered how this partnership with Arthur was even going to work when he wanted to either throw Arthur to the floor or gag him. He doubted Arthur would be amenable to either idea.

"I'm actually a bit surprised," Arthur said just as they stepped out of the apartment, "You and Gwen seem to really know your business. I almost wish you two were working for the force. We could use investigators like you."

Oh, so Merlin hadn't imagined Arthur's thank you the previous night. He carefully schooled his expression, afraid of saying something that would anger Arthur again. "Maybe in another life. I'm happy where I am now."

Arthur seemed to accept that, and their conversation turned to Hengist and the boxing ring.

* * *

Camelot Tribune -- April 12, 1919

**Tragic loss during illegal boxing leads to crackdown on druid activities**

Fintan Larsen, son Odin Larsen of Odin Industries, was found dead in a warehouse on Camelot's infamous South Side. Police say Larsen was violently beaten to death, and evidence points to his involvement in an illegal boxing ring. Police suspect his death was ordered by Kel Kanen, a known druid criminal who is a person of interest in an investigation of the pugilistic underworld.

"Larsen's tragic death will not go unanswered. The police will not tolerate such a barbaric murder in this city," said Chief of Police de Bois in a statement.

Already, the police force in the South Side has been doubled and four raids have been carried out in what one witness said was "the harshest crackdown" on the druid community he'd seen since the Ygraine Act went into effect.

Odin Larsen, who has said in the past that politics take a back seat to business, has begun his own crackdown on vice amongst his employees. New rules in his factories include mandatory inspections and new restrictions on employee activities in his factories. Odin Industries employs about 40% of Camelot's druids.

"The loss of my son has shown me that druids cannot be trusted. Uther Pendragon tried to warn me. Well, the lesson may have come too late, but I will make up for all of my previous laxness," said Larsen.

Larsen has stated he plans to throw his full support behind Pendragon's run for governor.  


* * *

"Somebody following us," Merlin said after they'd turned three corners. Arthur turned around to look, but of course, nobody was there.

"Are you sure?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "I do this for a living. It's the guy across the street, the one who looks like he's window shopping. And don't look!"

Arthur very visibly restrained himself from looking. "Is he following you or me?"

"We could split up to find out, but I'd rather not risk it. We should probably just try to catch him."

"And how do we do that?"

Merlin sped up his stride, this time going down a street counter to where they had to go. Sure enough, the man followed them. Merlin let his magic increase the reflectiveness of the windows they passed, just enough to be able to tell. 

This definitely put a damper on going to Arthur's offices and trying to dig up more dirt on Agravaine. Maybe Agravaine was onto them and was trying to stop them? Merlin shook his head. No, there was no way Agravaine could have known their plans yet.

Merlin grabbed Arthur's arm and directed him down a narrow alley. "This is a shortcut," he said, keeping his voice at a regular volume. "We should make it to Elyan's faster this way."

Arthur gave him a bewildered look, but thankfully didn't say anything. They kept walking, and Merlin kept leading them down increasingly shady looking corners. Arthur's discomfort was palpable, but he did a good job of keeping complaints to himself.

And then… yes. Merlin had been right. The guy following them opted to jump ahead instead of trying to keep up with all their strange twists. Merlin brought a finger up to his lips to warn Arthur to keep silent, then he started creeping up on their tail.

The guy was looking around, trying to look both casual and be attentive at the same time. Amateur. He was caught completely unaware when Merlin grabbed him by both shoulders.

"Jeepers!" the guy shouted. 

Arthur noticed him going for something in his pockets and grabbed his hands. "Who are you? Why were you tailing us?"

The man struggled for a moment, then his shoulders sagged. "I've… I've got a message. From Morgana."

Merlin started enough to let go of the man, and immediately the guy pulled free. He didn't bolt though, just reached into his coat again and pulled out a paper. "Here, she said to give this to you," he said, handing the paper to Merlin. 

It was a wanted notice with Merlin's face on it. Where the issuer had found a photograph of him, Merlin didn't know, but he was impressed at how large they'd made it. The reward was listed at five hundred dollars. "Wow, somebody really has it out for me."

"Yeah, she said ye'd be interested."

"Did she say who--?"

"Aredian. Seems some higher up told him to step up the chase for you."

That could be any number of people, but most likely Uther or Agravaine. Merlin's glance slid over to Arthur. "I guess I probably shouldn't show my face in public for a while."

The guy shook his head. "And she said, uh. She said she wanted to talk to you, Mr. Pendragon. That you should meet her at Agravaine's mansion, so that the air could be cleared."

"We're supposed to believe her?" Merlin asked, just as Arthur said, "Of course."  
Merlin glared at Arthur. "You know that it's a trap, right? There's no way she'd be this helpful."

"Whatever you may believe, Merlin, Morgana is still my sister! I have to-- I have to give her the benefit of the doubt."

Oh, sure. The woman known to be a sorceress and who was quite blatantly involved with Morgause Grayson got twenty chances, but Merlin couldn't be trusted at all. He muttered a few curses under his breath and then smiled at the messenger. "When does she want to meet with us?"

"Hey, who said you were coming?"

The messenger glanced between the two of them, shrugged, then said, "Tomorrow at 2pm. She said she'd be expecting you. So don't be late."

And then he walked off. Merlin considered setting a magical tracker on him, but he was sure that Morgana or Morgause would just notice that anyway. Besides, it didn't matter. One way or the other, they were probably going to meet with Morgana tomorrow.

"Okay, I figure, we tell the others when we get back, and--"

Arthur interrupted him. "We won't be telling anybody. This is between me and Morgana, and I won't be endangering Guinevere."

In that respect, it appeared that Arthur and Lance were disgustingly similar. On the other hand, Merlin could already see Gwen insisting to come along as back up, or to confront Morgana herself. 

"Got it. No telling Gwen. How about none of us goes, and then there won't be anything for Gwen to be upset about when she invariably finds out." 

Arthur shook his head. "I told you. Morgana is my sister. I want to talk to her. Maybe I can convince her to sever her ties with Morgause Grayson. My father still misses her. She'd have a place in our family again if she only would take it."

Merlin stared up at the sky and counted to ten to stop himself from yelling at Arthur. He'd get himself killed at this rate.

"Fine. I'm definitely coming with you though. You apparently have no survival instinct at all."

Arthur snorted. "You should talk. I don't think using your own body to protect me from bullets and glass shards is particularly healthy either. Not to mention all that you did last night."

"That's... that's different," Merlin said. He rubbed the faint scar on his wrist, the only reminder of that day at Elyan's store. 

Arthur's expression indicated that he didn't believe Merlin, but they both dropped the conversation. Merlin mulled over what the hell Morgana could possibly want at this point. He didn't doubt that the invitation had been meant as much for him as for Arthur. 

It might be a good opportunity to get some information out of Morgana. Let her think she had the upper hand. Merlin could easily out-magic her, and the chance to find out what Morgause's plans were was too good to pass up.

Not that Gwen would accept his reasoning, but he thought she'd appreciate him keeping Arthur alive.

* * *

Gwen, Lance, and Gwaine were waiting outside of Merlin's apartment when Merlin and Arthur got back. The three of them were quietly talking to each other, until Gwaine spotted them and waved. 

"Good, you're back," Gwaine said as he walked toward them. "I was talking with Gwen and Lance, and I think it's best if we head to my place for now."

Arthur's eyebrows drew up for a moment, his skepticism quite clear. "Your place? Any particular reason for that?"

"Oh, don't start. It's larger than Merlin's apartment, and as far as we know, none of Morgause's people know that I'm involved. I've had no contact with them, and I'm not a _known associate_ of any of you. I just think it would be safer, _and_ more comfortable."

Something about the way he said it made Merlin uneasy, but it wasn't until they made it to the apartment that Merlin noticed. The previous time he'd been there, the place was normal enough; now, it teemed with magic. Strong magical protection, on par with what Merlin had at his own apartment.

He narrowed his eyes at Gwaine. He was hiding something.

They decided that Gwen would stay in the guest room, Lance and Arthur in the living room, and Gwaine and Merlin in the bedroom. After they'd had dinner, pooled their new information -- Arthur omitted to mention that Morgana had invited him to Agravaine's mansion, and Merlin grudgingly did the same -- they settled into their respective rooms for the night.

Gwaine groaned and sprawled across the bed. "I thought I'd never get some rest. Being on my feet all day is killer."

Merlin carefully perched himself on the edge of the bed. "So, care to mention where all the protective spells came from?"

Instantly, Gwaine's expression went blank. "Ah, I pulled in a favor from a... friend. That's one of the things I was doing today. I figured your apartment was no good, just from the size alone, and that we needed a new base."

"All right, but this friend of yours does _really_ good work."

"I should hope so, with what I pay." Gwaine sat up and draped himself across Merlin's shoulders. His mouth was right next to Merlin's ear. "You know what would help us both relax?"

It was such an obvious distraction tactic, but… Merlin leaned back and ran a hand over Gwaine's thigh. "I might have an idea." He turned his head to kiss Gwaine, letting his magic out at the same time. His body's reaction was instantaneous: lust coursing through his veins, settling just under every last inch of his skin. 

Gwaine moaned. "We need to keep quiet. Princess will complain," he whispered, but his hands were already undoing Merlin's belt.

Quiet would certainly be a challenge, but Merlin thought they might be able to manage.

* * *

For some reason, Gwen wouldn't look Merlin in the eye the next morning. She kept averting her gaze, and when he asked her, she only mumbled that she didn't get a lot of sleep. Lance, in contrast, kept looking at her with the saddest eyes. 

"I think Lance and I will try to follow up on some leads from last night," Gwen said, and she escaped the kitchen before Merlin had a chance to pour any coffee for himself. Lance excused himself shortly after that. Merlin worried for a moment, but then figured that if it was something she wanted his help with, she'd just tell him.

About ten minutes after Gwen and Lance had left, Arthur came into the kitchen. Merlin nearly choked on his coffee when he realized that Arthur had come out of the guest room -- the room that Gwen had been using last night.

"Have you seen Guinevere?" Arthur asked, with only a touch of embarrassment himself. "She, ah, wasn't in her room when I checked."

"She might be outside? I don't know. She said she and Lance were going to follow up on some leads from yesterday."

Arthur sighed and sat down on the seat Gwen had vacated. "I just… I thought it would be nice to have breakfast with her."

Merlin snorted but decided it was none of his business. He didn't exactly have any leg to stand on, considering how he had spent his night.

"By the way, I still don't think it's a good idea to go meet Morgana on what is essentially her turf."

"My uncle's manor is not 'her turf,' as you put it. Besides which, Morgana is still my sister, no matter what. That hasn't changed."

Merlin couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes. "I think I've had more recent dealings with Morgana than you have, and nothing I've seen of her indicates she has any sort of fondness for you."

"You just don't understand her. She's always been a bit stubborn, and she butted heads with my father more often than not, but in the end, she's family."

Well, if there was one thing to say for Arthur Pendragon, it was that he was loyal to the last. Merlin surreptitiously sent out a tendril of magic and breathed in the wonderful aura: Arthur had _that_ going for him as well. He couldn't decide whether he preferred Gwaine or Arthur, and once again wished he could experience them both at the same time, like he had for just that briefest moment at Hengist's hideout.

Arthur stood up. "Well, no point in lollygagging about. Agravaine's manor is outside of town. We should head to my house and pick up my car. Unless you want to stay here and keep Gwaine company." For a moment it seemed like Arthur wanted to further comment on that, but then changed his mind.

Merlin mentally shrugged. He didn't care either way what Arthur thought of his liaison with Gwaine. Well. He'd care if what Arthur wanted was to join them for what would probably be the most incredible one night stand in Merlin's life. Chuckling to himself, he went to join Arthur on the way out.

Gwaine was waiting by the door. "Where are you off to?

"I don't know about Merlin, but I actually have important meetings to attend. I have a real job, with regular working hours."

Merlin grit his teeth and didn't say anything about that particular barb. "I figured I'd go with him and make sure nobody tries to kidnap him again. He's a regular damsel in distress."

Despite the intended jab at Arthur's dignity, Merlin had to admit that he actually was worried about Arthur. No matter how much faith Arthur had in Morgana, Merlin wouldn't put it past her to leave Arthur's corpse floating in a lake, like she had Will. 

"So you were just sneaking out, without telling the rest of us, because you were on a completely routine run to your office?" Gwaine gave them both a skeptical look.

Merlin poked Gwaine with his magic and watched Gwaine squirm under the light graze. Maybe if he did it enough--

"Not happening. I might not know _you_ that well, Merlin, but I know the Princess well enough to see he's hiding something. And you can't distract me like that."

Arthur looked puzzled about the last statement, but Merlin quickly said, "Fine. You want to know? Morgana invited us to visit her, and _he_ thinks she's trustworthy enough to go."

That got a stronger reaction out of Gwaine than he expected. "You're walking into enemy territory by yourself? No."

Arthur groaned in frustration. "See, this is why we didn't tell anybody! I don't even want Merlin along! This should just be between me and Morgana."

It was almost cute how Arthur expected things to go his way, when nothing so far even hinted at Morgana feeling anything but contempt for her half-brother. 

"Fine, I know how stubborn you are. Let me get my coat, I'm coming with you." Gwaine was gone only a few moments, probably fearing that they'd go without him. Arthur's fists were clenched though. "He always--"

But when Gwaine came back, dressed to go out, Arthur just glared. "You'll stay back though."

"Absolutely. Morgana never has to know I was there. I'll just be backup." His eyes slid over to Merlin. "I don't think you could hide your presence though."

"Nah, Morgana will definitely know I'm there either way. Might as well meet her head-on."

Arthur grumbled some more, but they made their way out of the apartment. Absently, Merlin wondered if they should have left Lance and Gwen a note, but then decided against it. No need to get them involved too. No way would Gwen let them storm off without her.

* * *

"She's going to figure out we're not alone!" Arthur yelled. 

"Can you just trust me for once, Princess?" Gwaine said, still argumentative. The two of them would probably never stop. 

At least it was hard to hear either of them over the sound of the automobile -- Arthur's very own Duesenberg. Merlin should have figured that Arthur would have a loud, flashy car, not just a Model T Ford like the rest of the population. Merlin was half tempted to place a curse on the car, have it break down after all this is over, but he couldn't be sure that the spell wouldn't backfire and make the car break down with them in it. It figured that Agravaine's mansion was far enough outside the city that it was impossible to take public transportation there.

Merlin sighed and shifted closer to Gwaine. Three grown men packed into one seat was a tight squeeze. Arthur's thighs kept bumping against his, and Gwaine has his arm across the backrest of the seat, brushing against Merlin's neck every time they hit a bump.

Being stuck between Gwaine and Arthur was causing Merlin's magic to go haywire. It was disconcerting and, worse, he still couldn't figure out why he was reacting to them the way he was. If anything, his magic should have detested Arthur, and Gwaine shouldn't even have registered. Especially since neither of them had magic of their own.

"Agravaine was always closer to my father than Uncle Tristan was," Arthur said during a lull in their argument. "He used to come to our place for dinner. My mother would help the cook prepare everything. I think she hated having her brothers over as much as she loved it."

If only Merlin's childhood had been that simple. 

"Must have been nice. My family ended up in the poorhouse after Prohibition went through. Couldn't afford a cook anymore," Gwaine said. "Thanks for that."

Dust blew into their faces as they turned onto a side road. Merlin was glad, then, that Arthur had insisted on goggles and scarves. He had to admit that it made both Arthur and Gwaine look a bit dashing.

"I've told you before, it's not my fault your family couldn't find legal means of sustaining themselves."

The arguments between them were strange. At times they seemed to just be teasing; other times, Merlin was sure the two of them couldn't stand each other.

"Anyway, what about this house we're going to?" Merlin asked, to keep another full-blown fight from happening.

"It's the family estate," Arthur explained. "It went to Agravaine, since he was the older one. It's near the lake, so my father, Agravaine, and Tristan used to go fishing together. Took me and my mother a few times too. My mother always said she hated going, but in the end she'd be smiling and laughing with us."

There was something off about his voice, but Merlin couldn't place it. Then again, it was no secret that Ygraine Pendragon had died young -- Merlin even knew the exact date -- so Arthur was probably just thinking about her.

"Anyway, the mansion. As far as I know, there was never any dispute over it. It's large, but my mother married my father and Tristan seemed happy enough living in the city. There's no reason for Agravaine to be involved with the gangs. He doesn't need the money or anything."

"Well, my information source is fairly trustworthy in that regard," Gwaine said. "He wouldn't lie to me."

Arthur frowned. "Maybe Agravaine is being controlled. Sorcerers like to possess people."

"No, they don't," Merlin said before he could stop himself. "I wish politicians would stop playing that card, do you know how much power is required to fully control another human being? Long enough to even be able to do anything useful? Most sorcerers don't have that kind of power, and for the ones that do, the hassle just isn't worth it."

"So you're admitting it then?" Arthur shot him a glance, just long enough to get Merlin worried, then turned his eyes back to the road. "Being a sorcerer."

Merlin froze, no retort ready. Right. He needed to learn to stop running his mouth off, because nothing good ever came of it. It was only lucky that Arthur had to pay attention to the road, or he might have caught Merlin's hesitation.

Gwaine saved him from further digging his own grave. "You always assume the worst, don't you? You don't have to be a sorcerer in order to read books about magic. I'm just a journalist, and I even I could have told you that possession is too tricky for most sorcerers to pull off. People who say they were being possessed are almost always lying." 

"But not always?" Arthur sounded particularly smug to have noticed that slip up. Just like a lawyer.

Gwaine didn't respond to that, and Merlin wondered if maybe he had some experience in that area too. Merlin got queasy thinking about the one time he used his magic to fully control a person. He wished he could claim that he hadn't known what he was doing, that he hadn't meant to -- but no. He had known, he'd done it on purpose, and the drain on his magic aside, it had been one of the most horrible, nauseating things he had ever done.

Any person who would willingly do that to somebody deserved to be locked up.

"Look, trust us on this, possession is almost impossible. If it were easy, don't you think Morgause and Mordred's gangs would have taken over the city by now?" 

"Not that they need those spells to do it. First the weapons running, and then... I talked to Leon this morning, he said they've had more magical disturbances in the past few weeks than the city has seen in months." Arthur's voice had gone soft, almost inaudible over the sound of the engines.

They drove a bit further in silence. Merlin watched the landscape pass and marveled at how rich one had to be to be able to afford a nice mansion outside of the city limits. Even before the ban on magic, his mother had barely been able to make ends meet. After that... well. Merlin was no longer able to use his magic to help put food on the table, not legitimately.

"So, Merlin. How'd you end up with a lovely partner like Gwen?" Gwaine's arm slid forward to rest on Merlin's shoulder.

Arthur glanced at both of them briefly, and his eyes narrowed. Merlin wondered if he was uncomfortable with their display--but that didn't fit; Gwaine and Arthur had had their fling in the past. Maybe he was jealous, and didn't want Gwaine touching another person. Whatever. Arthur had been courting Gwen for the past week, so he had no right to object.

Merlin pulled Gwaine's arm forward to rest across his chest. "After my previous partner died, I needed somebody to help me. Gwen proved herself competent."

"Well. She is remarkable, as always. I wish I had known how well she worked, I would have recommended her to join the detectives officially," Arthur said.

Right. Because the police force would have accepted a female detective so easily. 

"She single then?" Gwained asked. " I caught Elyan drunk once, he was ranting about the man his sister was seeing. I guess the sister is Gwen, and the man…?"

"Oh. Yes. Lance. He, well. He told Gwen that he was going off to Mexico. I've been in contact with him now and again. He was one of my inside sources. But he didn't want Gwen to know, in case he got caught. It probably wasn't the best choice on his part."

"How could he-- I mean. If I had a woman like Guinevere-" Arthur started, but Merlin cut him off.

"Don't talk about her like that!"

"Like how? I enjoy her company, and it's none of your business whether I court Guinevere or not."

"Sure it is. Gwen is my friend. I have to threaten you if you hurt her."

"As if you could ever do that, Merlin. You certainly can't take me in unarmed combat -- or have you forgotten that I'm a fairly decent boxer? -- and since you aren't a sorcerer, you can't fall back on that either. Unless you're holding back on me?"

Gwaine smiled and winked at Merlin, apparently finding the whole exchange amusing. 

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Nope, you're right. I couldn't possibly hurt you in a fight."

Conversation fell away again, though Merlin didn't mind it this time. He risked a few grazes of his magic against Arthur, sighed, and closed his eyes. When he did the same to Gwaine, Gwaine's arm around him tightened. Right. Gwaine could sense him when he did that. It really wasn't an appropriate time to be "groping" either of them, as Gwaine put it, so Merlin called back his magic and mulled in the silence.

He was comfortable like this. None of them sniping at each other, just enjoying the landscape and the open air. Even the loud noise of the engine didn't break the sense of peace Merlin felt.

He shouldn't let himself get lulled into complacency. He knew that it was all just an illusion. Arthur and Gwen would probably work something out, and even if they didn't Merlin doubted that Arthur would want to associate with Merlin once everything was over. Heck, Arthur and Gwaine, for all their differences, obviously still enjoyed being together. It wouldn't surprise Merlin if they somehow found their way together again.

Which, really, should suit Merlin just fine. He'd sworn off relationships years ago. He had no need to suddenly desire something stronger just because his best friend was maybe falling in love and his magic was all over the place.

Agravaine's mansion came into view. Merlin sneered a bit at the obvious show of wealth. It was easy to imagine Arthur and Morgana growing up in a place like this.

"Wait, hold up," Gwaine said. "Let me out a bit earlier. I'll follow you on foot, so they don't know I'm there."

Arthur nodded, and though Merlin had his own misgivings, he didn't say anything when the car stopped. He did throw a quick cloaking spell over Gwaine, who raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. It would keep him hidden just a bit longer.

"I'll signal to you if we need help," Merlin said. "You'll know what it is."

Gwaine nodded, and Arthur kept driving until they were near the front door. 

"I still don't think this is smart," Merlin muttered, but Arthur ignored him and used the knocker.

Morgana opened the door for them. "Oh, Arthur! You came!" Her magic did a clumsy grope at Merlin, which he tried to block against -- no, it still felt good, and it was all he could do not to moan. 

"And you brought Merlin. I'm a bit surprised." 

Hah. Merlin doubted that. Arthur seemed to take her at her word, however, because he said, "He's not really safe on his own right now, since the entire police force is looking for him. But you knew that already."

Morgana tilted her head in acknowledgement. "I did. Please, come in. I've got tea set up. We shouldn't discuss these things out in the open."

She waved the two of them inside; the moment Merlin passed her, she leaned in and whispered, "It's so nice to see you, darling."

Her voice sent shivers down his spine. In desperation, Merlin sent out a small tendril of magic towards Arthur, walking ahead, to remind himself that there were other alternatives. Both Merlin and Morgana nearly stumbled at the violent jolt the strange mixture of their three auras created. Morgana glared, and Merlin stood dazed for a second as he tried to figure out what had just happened.

"Did you just--" Morgana hissed at him.

"I have no idea." Merlin had expected either Arthur's aura to drown out Morgana's magic, or for it to synthesize the way it had with Gwaine. Instead, they seemed to repel each other, like two magnets of the same pole.

Interesting.

Morgana quickly composed herself. "Well, never mind that. I was expecting you. Please, join me in the parlor for some tea."

As they walked down the hall, Merlin couldn't help but note just how extravagant the mansion was. The architecture was beautiful -- and in a style designed to be built with the help of magic. He wondered if anybody had ever told Arthur about all the ways magic had been used before it had been banned.

The parlor was bright, with the open window letting in a gentle breeze. Merlin cast his magic out, just a touch, and hoped that Morgana wouldn't be able to follow such a subtle trail of it. He needed Gwaine to know where they were, at least.

"Morgana, it's good to see you," Arthur said as he sat down. 

Morgana gave him one of her smirks. "Of course, brother. How is Uther these days? Oh, perhaps I should call him father? I never did quite find out whether he considered me a daughter or not."

Arthur visibly flinched, which only led Morgana's smirk to deepen. She moved towards a cabinet that stood behind the sofa, where a tray of tea had already been placed. 

"Why did you call me here, Morgana?" Arthur asked while they watched her pour the tea. 

"Oh, there seems to be some big mix-up going on. I can't tell you how awful it feels to have half the city believe you to be a monster of some sort."

Merlin snorted at that, and Morgana shot him an amused look. Yes, he was more than acquainted with how it felt to be treated as different. 

She set the tray down on the coffee table in front of them. Merlin reached for one of the cups, and then stopped short. No. There was something wrong with the cups. He could feel it, the way magic just faintly hummed from one of them. It was exactly how he marked cards.

Morgana already had her cup in hand, drawing Arthur into a conversation about the media and how it had been lambasting her and Morgause. Merlin reached for the marked teacup. Arthur grabbed the other one, and Merlin pretended to take a sip of his own cup.

"Let's cut to the chase," Merlin said. "You obviously haven't called us here for mere chitchat. What does Morgause want?"

"What makes you think Morgause wants anything?" Morgana asked. "Morgause has always been an honest businesswoman, much like you--" She stopped abruptly, her brow creasing. Her eyes turned gold for a brief flicker of a second, and then she turned her attention to Arthur, who was just setting down his cup.

"No! You drank it?" Morgana leapt up and grabbed the cup, fairly screeching when she saw that it was empty. "No, no, no! That one was for Merlin!"

For once, Arthur seemed taken aback. "What? It was just tea." He glanced at Merlin. And kept staring, and staring, and staring, until Merlin started feeling uncomfortable. Finally, he ripped his attention back to Morgana. His voice was absolutely cold as he said, "What was in the tea, Morgana?"

"A love potion! It was supposed to make Merlin fall in love with me!"

"A love-- Like the kind my mother…? What _for_?" And again, Arthur was looking at Merlin.

Shit. What little Merlin knew about love potions said that they worked on a "love at first sight" basis. 

"You ruin _everything_ , Arthur!" Morgana's voice was absolutely livid. "This was supposed to be the turning point." She shot out a wave of power, pulling Arthur from the couch and flinging him across the room, to crash against the wall. Merlin winced, then set up a barrier around Arthur, strong enough, he hoped, to keep him from further harm.

Merlin's shield got Morgana's attention. She rounded on Merlin, hand outstretched to attack. "Why do you protect him! He stands for everything that's wrong with this society! He hates our kind!"

"If you kill him, you'll just be proving them all right about magic!" Merlin countered. He could already see Morgana gearing up for another spell, and he drew on his own reserves to send a strong force at her. She managed to withstand it, though it had shattered her concentration. "Arthur isn't the root of the problem and you know it. Arthur is doing his best to uphold the law in a moral manner, and he actually considers every person's case from every angle!"

"Oh, except yours? How often has he threatened to have you convicted? How often does he say magic users are destroying the moral fiber of society?" A small ball of lightning was gathering in Morgana's hand, growing and growing.

Arthur was watching them both with his mouth agape. Well, there went that secret. Merlin sent more power to the barrier around Arthur and threw up a minor one for himself. 

That was a miscalculation. Morgana's spell wasn't lightning: it was simply _light_ , blinding him and leaving him helpless when he was grabbed from behind. Something heavy was wrapped around him. He struggled, and his magic tried to flare out, but instead of pushing his assailant off him, like he expected, he felt his magic getting squeezed back into his body.

"None of that now," another familiar voice said. Morgause. "I had these chains designed specifically for you. The more you struggle, the tighter they get."

Merlin cursed himself for not noticing Morgause sneaking up on him. But wasn't that typical of the two of them, one of them creating a distraction while the other did all the real work in the background. He'd let his guard down and now he was going to pay the price for it.

"Whatever you want, Morgause, you don't need Arthur for it. Just let him go," Merlin said, trying to feel for his barrier. He winced when Morgause sent out her own magic to shatter it, leaving Arthur vulnerable. His vision was still blurred by phantom spots of light, leaving him with no real clue as to what happened to make Arthur suddenly cry out in pain.

Morgause tightened her hands around Merlin's hair and forced him onto the ground. "You will listen to me, Merlin, and you will agree to help me."

Worse than those damn chains or even the spell tied to them was the feel of her magic on him, nauseating him to his core and leaving him out of breath. He could feel the way she was trying to rip his magic apart, and any attempt to fight her off was making the chains tighten around him. The headache building just behind his eyes exploded into sharp pain.

"That's fair unpleasant, isn't it?" Morgause said with a smirk. "I always find it interesting how auras interact. I made a point to study it, in fact, just so I could perfect this spell for you."

Suddenly there was a wrenching cry, and Morgause's hands left his shoulders. 

"Leave him alone!" Arthur shouted. He must have taken advantage of their distraction and rushed her. But his shout was soon followed by a snarl and another loud thud: Arthur hitting the wall again. The chains around Merlin tightened even more, making it hard to draw a breath.

At least his vision was clearing. He looked up and saw Morgause, dressed, as usual, in men's clothes: men's trousers, a gray vest, white shirt, and a fedora hat. She even wore a bright blue tie. On a man, the clothes would be considered "sharp." On Morgause, they were shameless.

"What do you want?" Merlin managed to gasp out. He spotted Arthur out of the corner of his eye, collapsed next to the window. His eyes were fluttering, indicating that he wasn't passed out, at least.

Morgause petted Merlin's hair, and he involuntarily flinched away. From the smirk on Morgana's face, the entire situation amused her.

"I've come into possession of a very unique artifact. I think you might be familiar with it. The Cup of Life?"

And despite having known already, the confirmation sent a chill through Merlin's body. He thought he was done with the thing. He never wanted to see it again, and to have Morgause whispering its name straight into his ear—

"I think you saw how I can apply it to the dead. I believe I could do a similar thing to the living. But that leaves me with a slight conundrum."

"No." Merlin's voice was flat. "Nothing you can do will make me help you. I told Cenred then, and I'll tell you now: I'm done with all of this."

Arthur was slowly standing up, looking more and more confused with each passing moment. "What's she talking about?"

Now Morgana chuckled. "Hasn't he told you about his sordid past with the Camelot Witches? He was Nimueh's right-hand man for a good number of years. Was involved in many Y Llaw Du rackets. I liked the one where he extorted that actress, what was her name... Catrina Troil?" 

Catrina Troil was a black hearted, hideous woman who magically transformed her looks into those of a dazzling blonde. She built her career and made thousands on her false face, a rich woman flouting the ban and getting away with it. It was child's play for Merlin to send a few magical notes with the Black Hand casting the Spell of Death her way, threatening to break her enchantments and expose her true face to society unless she paid him off. He'd taken her for all she was worth, then anonymously exposed her anyway. It had been in all the papers, and there was no way Arthur wouldn't know the story.

But instead of disgust, Arthur's face held an expression more akin to sadness when he looked at Merlin. "How young did you _start_?"

Merlin didn't know how to answer that, but Morgause didn't give him the opportunity. She pulled sharply on his hair, forcing his head to tilt backwards until she was whispering to him. "You will help me use the Cup of Life, or you will find out how far my influence extends. Do you think your spells can protect your mother, your partner, your friends all the time?"

He'd seen that look in her eye before, the week after Nimueh had died. That hard determination that had let Morgause swoop in during the power vacuum and take control of most of Nimueh's operations. The same look she'd had when she'd just assumed that Merlin would join her.

It hadn't worked on him then, and it wouldn't work on him now. He shook his head and struggled harder against his chains. "If you really think--" And the last of his breath was leaving him, crushed underneath those chains.

"Merlin!" 

He heard his name, he heard a gunshot, and he was falling, thudding to the floor. He didn't have the energy to look beyond where he lay. His vision was swimming again, completely different from the earlier blindness, and there just had to be a way for him get out of this without collapsing the entire building around them and--

Someone dragged him upright, and he instinctively struggled against it until a cool hand touched his neck.

The oppressive magic suddenly _stopped_. Not gone, just no longer an issue, because he had this wonderful anchor that showed him exactly how to weave out, how to escape the trap Morgause had set for him.

 _Gwaine_. Merlin opened his eyes, his mouth drawing a desperate breath as the chains around him loosened. Morgause was thrown back, her hands pressing against her stomach, blood running between her fingers.

"How did you do that?" Morgause's voice was cold with fury. "That should have been impossible to escape!"

Gwaine shrugged, and Merlin noticed the gun he was holding, aimed straight at Morgana. Neither woman looked scared; it wouldn't take long for Morgause to recover and gather her magic. They both probably had anti-bullet barriers up already as well. He forced himself to stand up, coughing and spluttering, but Gwaine kept his hand on Merlin and the warm, comforting pulse gave him enough energy to pull the chains off himself.

"I think we're at a standoff here, Grayson." Gwaine nodded his head at Arthur. "Let Pendragon go, and we can all leave quietly."

"I think you forget who has the advantage here." Morgana held up a small vial. "Arthur's under my control now." She motioned for Arthur to get up. "Arthur, attack them."

Slowly, Arthur stood up, shaking his head. Merlin closed his eyes, willing Arthur to fight the spell.

And then, to everybody's surprise, Arthur laughed.

"What?" Morgana's fists were shaking.

Arthur casually strolled over to Merlin's side, chuckling to himself the entire time. After giving Gwaine a brief nod, he turned to face Morgana. "You used a _love_ potion, Morgana. Love doesn't make somebody absolutely obedient. If you had done any research on my mother, you would have known that. And--" he broke off to turn his gaze onto Merlin, "yours wasn't the first face I saw after I drank it."

He straightened his stance and faced Morgana again. "I have to thank you though. I didn't want to fight you, but you've swayed my loyalties now. I can see that there's no rescuing you from the life you've chosen."

Morgana's face turned a comical red. "No! It wasn't supposed to go like this! Why isn't he--"

"Doesn't matter, I knew it wouldn't work." Morgause's anger was palpable. 

Freed of the confinement, Merlin could feel her pulling at all sorts of energy, even drawing from Morgana. That didn't matter. Merlin was stronger than her. He reached out and grabbed Arthur's hand. Immediately, his magic sang, jumping from Gwaine to Arthur and back again. He used them as conductors, amplified his own power to consume Morgause's spell before it ever came to fruition.

"Forget it, Morgause," Merlin said, just as she realized what had happened. "You've never been able to compete with me and you know it."

"Y'know, Pendragon, I think for once I'm glad you're a lawyer. Think we can do a citizen's arrest here? They were very blatantly using illegal magic." Gwaine kept his tone light, yet Merlin didn't hear a single hint of humor in it.

"Orkney, I'll even give you an exclusive interview when we're done."

The two women looked at each other, and Morgause nodded. Merlin readied himself for another spell.

He didn't expect Morgana's sudden scream.

The shockwave was enormous, shaking the ground around them and sending all three of them sprawling. Merlin wrapped his arms around both Arthur and Gwaine and set a barrier around them, though with each subsequent screech he felt it weakening. His ears were ringing, and when he cast a glance at Gwaine, he noticed blood dripping out of his ears. Arthur was much the same, trying to block out the sound with his hands and accidentally smearing blood across his face. 

The screeching kept going on and on, and Gwaine was saying something but it was impossible to hear him.

The ceiling cracked, and the first bits of plaster started landing on the shield. The protective bubble was becoming more and more opaque, covered in fine dust.

Even if he had been able to see, Merlin didn't think he'd have been able to stop the ceiling from collapsing down around them. Every piece of lumber and furniture that landed on the shield shook Merlin to the core, until even holding on to Arthur and Gwaine couldn't stop his magic from giving out. He shouted to warn them, but still deafened by the noise he couldn't even hear himself.

The screeching stopped abruptly, just as his shield gave out. Merlin froze in the sudden silence, surprised when they were not dead. He opened his eyes to see Gwaine and Arthur, both dust-covered, struggling to push wood and chunks of plaster and brick out of the way. 

Merlin stood up slowly and assessed the damage. They were standing inside a crater of rubble, the outline of his protective shield unnaturally sharp against the floor. A desk had fallen through the ceiling and splintered onto the ground; the couch cushions had sunk low under the weight of a large wooden beam. Dust covered everything.

Morgause and Morgana were nowhere to be seen.

Stunned, the three of them just stood there blinking first at the destruction then at each other before quietly scrambling out through what was left of the window and heading towards the car.

"I told you it was a trap," Merlin mumbled once they were in the seats.

Arthur cuffed him in the back of the head, but there was little force behind it. 

"Let's go back."

\--

Gwen took one look at them on the doorstep and ordered them all to strip. "I don't care if this is Gwaine's apartment, but you are not dragging all that dirt in."

Arthur and Gwaine gave her token protests, but Merlin was too tired to complain. He stripped his shirt off and would have given Gwen a show if Lance hadn't appeared and handed them all towels to wrap around their waists.

Merlin winced at the way Arthur was staring at him, hoping that nobody else would notice. He didn't know how Arthur wanted to handle the love potion situation, but he wasn't going to say anything if Arthur didn't either. 

Gwaine's apartment was one of those fancy new ones with indoor bathing facilities. Merlin was pathetically grateful; he did not want to head to one of the public showers, and heating up a tub at this point seemed like too much trouble. The water in the apartment wasn't particularly hot, but it was enough to rinse them all off in quick succession.

Afterward, Merlin wanted nothing more than to collapse in a pile in the bedroom, but, shoving Gwaine's clothes at each of them, Gwen herded them out to the sitting room, where Lance had placed coffee on the small table.

"What happened?" she asked, once they were all reasonably settled. Gwen and Lance sat in the two chairs opposite the three of them on couch. Merlin didn't miss that Arthur was sitting just a bit closer to him than propriety dictated.

Before anybody else could say anything, Merlin said, "I want it on the record that I was against meeting with Morgana at all."

Gwen nearly dropped her coffee cup. "What? You met with Morgana?"

Merlin listened to Arthur and Gwaine give a brief rundown of everything, and Gwen's agitation got worse by the minute. By the end of it, Merlin was surprised that her hand was still steady enough to hold the coffee cup. Lance, in contrast, was gripping the arm of his chair so tightly his knuckles were white.

"So what was Morgause talking about? Why does she need _Merlin's_ help?" Gwen's voice shook.

Arthur and Gwaine looked at each other, then turned their gaze on Merlin. "I'm a bit curious as well," Arthur said. "And don't tell me you aren't a sorcerer, since apparently I was the last to know for certain."

Merlin sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I didn't want to talk about this."

"I think you owe us an explanation," Gwaine said as he poked Merlin's side. Arthur narrowed his eyes at Gwaine, but then shook his head and turned away from them.

Well, it should figure that Arthur's behavior would be a bit odd. Merlin decided it was best to just ignore it. He curled closer to Gwaine and closed his eyes.

"I know Morgause from when I was running with Nimueh's gang."

None of them said anything.

"Morgause and I were Nimueh's right and left hands, as it were. When Nimueh died, Morgause took power. She knew how strong I was, and she knew that my magic could easily rival hers. She offered me a position under her leadership, but I was ready to quit the gang by then."

Merlin snorted as he remembered Morgause's attempts to sway him after the first refusal, each of them an offer of money and power a greater than the last. When those didn't work, she'd tried blackmail instead, but after his stint running the Llaw Du side of business, he knew better than anyone how to deal with that.

"She's gotten her hands on an artifact known as The Cup of Life," Merlin continued. That Cup had been the death of Nimueh, and that entire affair had killed a part of Merlin's soul. He never wanted to see the Cup again, and yet here they were.

"Morgause isn't strong enough to power the Cup for what she wants," Lance said, interrupting the strange chill in the room. "I know she was doing a lot of tests, and she's mastered the art of animating a corpse -- you all saw that with Tristan de Bois. But she was never satisfied. And then she started getting suspicious of me and had me transferred, so I don't know what she wants that she needs Merlin's help for."

Merlin stood up and walked around behind the couch, carefully not looking at any of them. "She wants immortality."

All of them let out startled noises, and Merlin's fingers curled into a fist. "When Nimueh died, it was because she was attempting to gain immortality through the Cup of Life. Morgause knows that, she'd heard whispers of Nimueh's plans, and she thinks that Nimueh failed because she didn't have enough power. But Nimueh was twice the sorceress Morgause is."

Merlin turned around to look at them. "The Cup is not meant to be used like that. No person should be immortal. It goes against the very laws of nature, and the Cup rebels. I'd rather die than help her."

From the looks in their eyes, Merlin had managed to impart at least some of the gravity of the situation. He hoped they would never have to see the horror the Cup could wreak first hand; he'd had nightmares about it for weeks.

"Don't worry, Merlin," Gwen said. "We'll stop her. Between the five of us, we should have enough resources. Elyan even mentioned he has a shipment of weapons that can counter magic."

Gwaine nodded. "She might have control of a large part of the city, but she isn't the only magical activity in town. I'm sure if I speak to my contacts, they can get the Druids involved too."

"Not to mention the police. If we warn them in advance, we could close in on her and have her arrested. Her _and_ Morgana." Arthur wore a look of determination that Merlin was intimately familiar with: it was the same look Arthur wore whenever he was in court.

"And we'll protect you too, Merlin," Lance said, in a quiet voice. "She won't get her hands on you."

The others voiced similar sentiments, making Merlin smile. He placed a hand on Arthur's and Gwaine's shoulders, letting just a touch of his magic flow through to them. Gwaine visibly jolted, though Arthur just softened his gaze.

"I'm thankful to all of you. But please, if it comes down to it: save yourselves. I can handle Morgause, and I don't think I could live with myself if anything happened to any of you. I've already had to watch one friend die. I don't want to repeat that experience."

Not one of them agreed, and Merlin was both surprisingly happy at their friendship, and absolutely terrified of what Morgause could do to them. His mind was already running through all the protection spells he knew, wishing he had the capacity to cast all of them.

Gwaine stood up, squeezed Merlin's hand briefly, and then pulled away completely from him. "All right. I think we did buy a bit of time today, but we'll have to prepare. I'm sorry to do this, but I think it might be better for everybody to go home, make what preparations you need, and contact anybody you need to. Most importantly though," Gwaine gave a pointed look to Arthur, "we all need to relax for at least one night, so we're at one hundred percent when we confront Morgause."

Merlin expected Arthur to protest, but he nodded and said, "You're right. I have a lot of things I need to do if we want to make an arrest like this stick. We'll see each other in the morning?"

Gwen and Lance voiced their own assent, and after they'd all finished their coffee -- cold by now -- Gwen, Lance, and Arthur were out the door. 

Merlin trailed after them toward the door, unsure, until Gwaine grabbed him and kissed him solidly. He held Merlin's face, gently rubbing along Merlin's jaw even while he coaxed his mouth to open. Gwaine's stubble scratched at Merlin's cheek, a contrast to all the other gentleness that had Merlin moaning.

With reluctance they pulled away from each other, breathing heavily.

Gwaine kept his hands on Merlin's jaw and looked him straight in the eye. "Merlin, I know we barely know each other, but--"

Panic flared in Merlin's chest. "Don't--"

"You're the first person to make me feel this way," Gwaine finished. "I don't know how this will all end, but I don't want it to be over when the business with Morgause is done."

Oh. Oh no. Merlin stepped away from Gwaine and tried to control his breathing. "I-- I don't usually--"

Gwaine laughed. "I figured as much. Don't worry, this isn't my usual way of things either. I'm much more of a one-night only kind of guy. But there's something about you..." Gwaine shrugged, as if he'd given up trying to figure it out. "Anyway, I'm not asking anything from you, just that you give me a chance when we're not trying to save the city from something disastrous."

"What about Arthur?" 

"What about him?"

"You two are--"

This time, Gwaine's laugh was far more cynical. "The princess and I are a thing of the past. We tried it, it didn't work. We were constantly getting on each others' nerves. The sex was good, and when we worked, we worked, but when we didn't, we were close to murdering each other."

That wasn't what Merlin's magic was saying, and that wasn't how it had seemed even just a few hours ago, but Merlin let it slide. He didn't want to dredge up relationship _anything_. He wanted to go, before Gwaine decided he needed an answer to his question. An answer Merlin couldn't give.

So he backed out of the apartment with a quick, "See you tomorrow," and tried not to think about how tempting Gwaine's offer was.

No relationships, ever. That's what he'd told himself. That's what he'd sworn, that night Nimueh had died.

\--

Camelot Tribune

**Nimueh 'the Witch' Lake found dead**

Camelot, June 22 1921 -- The charred remains of Nimueh Lake, aged 43, were discovered yesterday on Avalon Island at the center of Lake Avalon. Detectives were sent to investigate after a freak lightning storm was determined to have been caused by magic, with its epicenter on the small island.

Currently, investigators have few leads as to the exact cause of death. Anonymous magic experts speculate that it was a magical duel gone wrong, while others believe it may have been the equivalent of a magical malfunction.

Lake, a notorious sorceress who is said to rule the Camelot Witches has been alleged to have personally killed at least twenty-three people. She was also at the center of Ygraine Pendragon's death eight years ago.

Police will be questioning anybody associated with Lake, including members of the gang as well as rivals who operated outside of it.

* * *

The apartment felt particularly empty when Merlin finally got home. It was the same as it had been just a week ago, but now the emptiness, the loneliness, of his tiny little room weighed on him. Merlin had to remind himself that he'd imposed it on himself, but it still didn't stop him from wallowing for a bit. 

Merlin changed into his pajamas and flopped onto the sofa bed.

"Nobody to blame but yourself," he muttered. He used his magic to close the blinds, lock the door, and then pulled the covers over his head.

He tried to force himself to either think of how to defeat Morgause, or at least get some sleep, but his mind kept circling back to Gwaine. To Arthur. With his magic reacting to them the way it did, Merlin was starting to think maybe the druids were right about the destiny crap.

And that just sent him into a whole other set of memories. Nimueh, and how she always talked about holy bonds. Two sides of the same coin, or the strength of trinities. 

"You, Morgause, and I, we could have been a trinity, under other circumstances," Nimueh had said once. "Magic, courage, strength. But I think we were born in the wrong era for that."

Merlin never could figure out who was supposed to be magic in that scenario. Himself, for having more of it than either of them? Or maybe he was strength, because he was stronger. It didn't really matter though. Nimueh had still been hung up on her dead girlfriend and he and Morgause couldn't stand each other, never mind the fact that her magic tasted like poison to him. He didn't see how they could ever be stronger together. It wasn't like--

The doorbell rang. Merlin shot up, startled out of his thoughts, a barrier already half formed. It took him a moment to realize that he wasn't actually under attack. He sighed, pulled on a dressing gown, and made his way to the front door, wary of Morgana or Morgause. 

He sent out his magic to see who it was and nearly doubled over from the sudden intense feedback.

Arthur. Arthur was on the other side.

Merlin fumbled the door open, not sure what he wanted to happen but knowing that he needed to see Arthur. 

There was only a small moment of hesitation before Arthur was kissing him, desperate, not giving Merlin a chance to take a breath. Arthur's hands were on him, keeping him from pulling away, and his eyes were half lidded and still somehow staring right into his soul. When Merlin breathed in, he could smell Arthur's cologne.

And Merlin's magic was dancing inside him, so wildly that a few sparks escaped and caused the floor lamp to flicker.

"Arthur--"

"Shut up. Later. Talk later." Arthur's voice came out heavy, interspersed with deep breaths. He pushed Merlin back into the apartment, kicked the door shut behind him, and didn't even acknowledge Merlin's protests before he started throwing off his coat.

Oh god. Merlin dug his nails into his palms and tried to clear his head. He had to stop this. He needed to stay calm, to look at this rationally. What would Gwen do?

Gwen would tell him that he wasn't allowed to sleep with Arthur under any circumstances. Arthur was under that love potion -- these weren't his own feelings -- not to mention the fact that Gwen was obviously interested in Arthur and he'd be the lowest kind of friend to get in the way of that.

"Merlin! Stop dawdling!" Arthur's voice was sharp, but something in his eyes gave away insecurity. He'd already stripped his shirt off, so that Merlin could take in his beautiful torso. Not particularly built -- not the way Gwaine was -- but underneath the soft belly there was a hint of muscle. Because Arthur boxed regularly, he'd said.

Merlin ripped his gaze away. "This is wrong. You aren't-- you aren't in your right mind. I can't--"

"Yes, you can," Arthur countered. He closed the distance between them, kissed Merlin again, this time so soft and gentle Merlin's defenses crumbled even further. 

It was impossible. He couldn't even deny himself a night of simple pleasure with Morgana or Mordred, how could he deny himself when every fiber of his being screamed at him how much it wanted Arthur? He was drowning in euphoria, completely overwhelmed. He unconsciously reached out with his magic to find some sort of anchor, but he was left floundering.

"I shouldn't--" Merlin tried, but it was really just a token protest.

"This is my choice," Arthur said, expression set with that same stubborn determination he wore to court. "You are not making me do this. The potion is not making me do this. Let's just enjoy ourselves."

And he kissed Merlin again, not holding back at all. 

That was it. Merlin was gone. It felt too good, and if Arthur was insisting it was all right, then Merlin was in the clear. It wasn't his fault at this point. The magic was pulling at him, and there was no point to resisting when he knew the end result anyway.

And it was so, so much easier to give in.

Merlin dragged Arthur back to the sofa bed. Probably nothing like how Arthur's mansion looked, and the bed was probably not anywhere near as large or as soft as Arthur was used to -- but that didn't matter.

They helped each other out of the rest of their clothes, not caring where they fell on the floor. Once on the bed, Arthur resumed his attack on Merlin's mouth. The kisses were sloppy, and maybe with anybody else Merlin would have complained, but with Arthur, mere contact alone was enough to bring him to near hardness. His magic was intensifying every sensation, filling every touch with extra heat and leaving skin almost too sensitive.

"Can you feel me?" Merlin said, gasping when Arthur sucked on his collar. 

Arthur's pulled back, confused. "Feel you? What do you mean?"

Merlin pushed his magic toward Arthur, but Arthur's expression didn't change at all. 

"My magic. I thought... when I touched both you and Gwaine earlier today, you seemed to react--"

Arthur frowned. "Don't talk about Gwaine. This is about you and me now."

Something was there, something that Merlin needed to examine, but Arthur had slid _down_ , and that first hint of heat around his cock made all other thoughts flee.

Funny. Before he'd known about Arthur's past with Gwaine, Merlin would have assumed he was too straight-laced to sleep with men. But not only did Arthur have experience, he was also extremely good at it. He took Merlin in almost all the way to the back of his throat, and only encouraged Merlin to move faster, to thrust harder.

Merlin couldn't _think_. Didn't want to think. His magic was pouring off of him in waves, stroking Arthur, making him _moan_ , no matter that Arthur claimed he couldn't feel it. All Merlin needed was a conduit for his magic to flow through, and then Arthur would be alight with magic himself.

Maybe they just needed to be closer. Merlin pushed Arthur off of him -- never mind that his body protested the sudden lack of warmth -- and flipped them over so that Merlin was on top. "Can I-- Can I fuck you?" His voice was hoarse with desire.

Arthur's eyes widened, and he nodded slowly, like he didn't trust his voice. Merlin couldn't blame him. He could barely keep his fingers from shaking.

While Merlin kissed Arthur again, he used his magic to open the drawer next to the sofa bed and draw the lubricant towards them. 

Arthur startled when the cold lid of the jar pressed against his stomach. "Where did that come from?"

Merlin ignored the question, opting instead to push Arthur's legs up and press kisses along the insides of his thighs. "You're going to feel so good," he murmured, letting out a shaky breath against Arthur's cock. Arthur's hands started running through Merlin's hair, all of that delicious electricity intensifying and lighting up Merlin's spine. 

Merlin could probably come just from their resonance alone, but he wanted _more_. He coated his fingers in lubricant and didn't bother waiting, just thrust the first two fingers in. He felt a bit bad when Arthur yelped, but as soon as Merlin bent his fingers and found that spot, Arthur was moaning and near sobbing. "Merlin, more, more, how--"

"It's my magic, I know you said you can't feel it but this is it, this is all of me," and it was just embarrassing how broken Merlin's voice was. He pulled his fingers out and replaced them with his cock, and even if he had wanted to he couldn't have gone slow, not with Arthur wrapping his legs around Merlin's waist and pulling, urging him to move faster and faster.

"Love you, love you, love you," Arthur chanted, over and over and those words should have stopped Merlin cold but everything felt too good. He'd deal with regret in the morning. For now, he let the pleasure consume them both.

* * *

Camelot Tribune

**Ygraine Pendragon Found Dead in her Home**

Camelot, February 17 1912 -- Ygraine Pendragon, wife of District Attorney Uther Pendragon, was found dead in the Pendragon mansion yesterday morning. Police say the cause of death is related to a magical potion whose origins are currently unknown. The coroner, Gaius Baird, has stated that Mrs. Pendragon's magical aura was completely out of balance.

The immediate effects of the potion and why Mrs. Pendragon was taking it are under investigation. Detectives are also looking into the source of the potion. An anonymous source close to the Pendragons posited that Nimueh Lake, a close friend of Ygraine Pendragon and renowned sorceress, may have had a hand in it.

Mrs. Pendragon's death comes at a time when public opinion is shifting away from supporting the expression of magic. Mrs. Pendragon's brother, Tristan de Bois, is a prominent member of the Anti-Sorcery League.

Ygraine Pendragon is survived by her husband, her son, and two brothers.

* * *

"How much do you know about my mother?" Arthur asked. His head was on Merlin's chest, and he traced circles across Merlin's skin with his fingers.

"Oh, the usual. That her death caused your father to throw his support with the Anti-Sorcerer League." And he knew that Nimueh's ties to her were closer than just a provider of magical potions, but that wasn't something that Arthur needed to know. It would just ruin the mood.

But already the guilt was starting to creep in. Here, right now, Merlin had to admit that Gwen had a point about him and his uncontrollable desires. If somebody put him in front of a court room, he didn't think he could lie about how he had taken advantage of Arthur. _Yes, your honor, I did know that he was under a love potion. No, your honor, I wasn't able to think better of it._

"You must have heard about how she died, how she overdosed on love potions." Arthur shifted and separated their bodies, lying down on his back next to Merlin. "She had to take them, over and over, more and more frequently, because they kept wearing off."

"Love potions... wear off?" That was news to Merlin. He'd never been particularly adept at potions -- which had frustrated Nimueh to no end -- but as far as he knew, love potions were meant to be permanent. "You sure she wasn't taking a lust potion, or something to cause mild infatuation?"

"No, they were love potions. She took them to fall in love with my father." Arthur said it with a calm sadness, like he had come to terms with it years ago. 

Merlin frowned. "Wasn't she... wasn't she already in love with him? And why would she need to take them so often?"

"Like I said, they kept wearing off. Or rather, she kept falling out of love." Arthur clenched his fist. "My father is not an easy man to love, and he made it especially hard for a young wife with a child.

"I hated seeing her miserable. Her smiles kept slipping, and she lost the energy to care for me. But when she took the potions, everything was right with the world again. She was happy being with him. Until a month, a week, a day later. He spent so much time at work, and when he was home he would yell. I realize know he was probably just under stress, but... that doesn't excuse it."

Arthur turned to face Merlin again. "So, don't worry about me. It'll wear off. You'll do something I'll find unforgivable."

"Like being a sorcerer?" Merlin tried to say it with good humor, but Arthur didn't so much as smile.

"Merlin, I still consider Morgana my sister. Magic alone won't make me hate anyone."

It was ridiculous how happy Merlin was about that, and he scrambled to find something to change the mood. He wasn't going to entertain the notion that Arthur could stay in love with him even despite the magic. Love was not for him. He'd told Gwaine as much. "I don't know if Gwen mentioned, but I have terrible impulse control."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Yes, I gathered that much from the past few hours. If I weren't happy with the end result, I'd be more concerned with how quickly you gave in."

"What about... my past? I was one of Nimueh's strongest enforcers. I was in charge of most of the Llaw Du business."

Arthur frowned slightly, then shrugged. "The past is the past. Everybody deserves a second chance. As long as you haven't killed anyone, I don't see the problem. And the Llaw Du thing... I think even my father has engaged in petty extortion."

Merlin gave a brittle laugh. "You're more forgiving than you appeared in court."

"Listen, if I was able to put up with Gwaine's flaws--"

"Yes!" Merlin sat up. "What about Gwaine? And Gwen, for that matter. You can't tell me you weren't interested in her at all."

That finally got Arthur to look troubled. "Guinevere is... I..." He fumbled for words. "I think I liked the idea of Guinevere. And she's very beautiful. But you've seen how she is with Lance, and it's nothing compared to how she was with me."

"So you won't even fight for her? Because Lance is a great guy, but Gwen has some choice words about his disappearance and I can't say I disagree with her." 

"Under other circumstances, you're right. I would be trying to woo her, as a lady like her deserves to be wooed. But now I can't find it in myself to care anymore and I feel bad about not caring, but what am I supposed to _do_ anyway?"

Wasn't that the kicker. Despite everything, Arthur actually cared about how Gwen felt. There was no denying that, magic-hating aside, Arthur was a decent guy.

"I'm sleeping with Gwaine," Merlin said, scrambling to find anything that might make Arthur rethink his stance.

"I know." Arthur's mouth was pressed thin. "I heard you, that one night. And the way you touch each other... It only bothered me a little bit, before, but now, it's really hard to not be jealous."

"I'm not going to stop sleeping with him or anybody else."

"I know that. I'm in love with you because of a love potion, I don't expect it to be mutual. I haven't really given you a reason to feel anything but contempt for me. Sorry about that, by the way."

If somebody had told Merlin a week ago that Arthur Pendragon would be apologizing for his conduct in court, he would have laughed them out of town. Now, his heart beat heavily in his chest, and he couldn't properly explain even to himself how wrong the entire situation felt.

"Shouldn't you be trying to not be in love with me?"

"It'll wear off. Or it won't. I don't care either way," Arthur said, and that was the end of it. He kissed Merlin again, just simple and soft, as if he were trying to convince Merlin about the sincerity of his feelings.

It was too overwhelming. Merlin felt a little bad about it, but he whispered "swefe" and watched Arthur slump over, asleep.

Maybe when Arthur woke up in the morning, he'd be thinking a bit clearer.

* * *

The frantic knocking at the door woke both of them.

They both jolted up, adrenaline and magic buzzing through Merlin's body. 

"Who--?" Merlin called out, and was relieved when Gwen answered. "It's me! Open up! Hurry!"

Merlin and Arthur looked at each other, then quickly began scrambling for clothes. Once they had their pants on, at least, Merlin opened the door with a quick magical flick of his wrist. Gwen stormed inside and headed to the radio, turning it on.

"What's going on?" Merlin asked while he buttoned his shirt as quickly as possible. It took him a moment to realize that it fit strangely not because it was wrinkled, but because it was Arthur's. Oh well. No time to worry about that now.

Gwen adjusted the station. "This is bad. Just listen."

_"--ity hall is completely overrun by what appear to be druid gang members. Attempts by the police to stop them have proven futile, as the gang members are apparently invulnerable to all form of weaponry. Some people report seeing these druids get shot multiple times and continue to move."_

"Damn it!" Arthur yelled and slammed his fist against the wall, startling both Merlin and Gwen. 

And then Gwen's eyes widened. Merlin thought he could see the exact moment when she figured out what had happened, that exact moment when her heart was crushed. He closed his eyes.

"Oh." All earlier urgency had fled her voice. "This is... new."

_"--have been spotted outside the Mercia district police station--"_

Merlin used his magic to shut the radio off. He wanted to run out the door and let Gwen and Arthur talk it out, because in the end, it wasn't really _his_ problem, but... No, Gwen was his closest friend, and she deserved better than that from him.

"Guinevere, I am so sorry. I should have told you."

She looked between the two of them. "How long has this been going on?"

"Only since yesterday." Arthur went over to Gwen. "I didn't mention it because I wasn't sure how to say it. Yesterday, at the manor, I mistakenly drank a love potion meant for Merlin. I chose to look at him instead of Morgana when the spell took effect."

"So, this thing between you two, it's not real?" Her voice trembled as she spoke, and Merlin wished he could just hug her and apologize for ruining everything, again.

"It's real. I have these feelings now, whether I want them or not."

"Do you want them? Can we find a way to remove them?"

Arthur smiled sadly. "As far as I know, these things are as permanent as love usually is. I've looked into it, after I started piecing together what had really happened to my mother. I might fall out of love with him, but I don't want you to wait for that eventuality. You're worth more than that."

"What about-- what about that night? Did it mean nothing?"

Now Arthur blushed. "I don't know what came over me. Normally I would never impose on a lady like I did. That night at Gwaine's place..." He shot a look over to Merlin. "I heard… Um, the walls are thin at Gwaine's apartment, and then I had an overwhelming urge to be with you," he said, turning back to Gwen.

Overwhelming--? The exact events of the evening were a haze of lust for Merlin, he and Gwaine playing their strange auras off of each other. And from the way that Arthur reacted to Gwaine...

"That might have been my fault," he said in a quietly. "I might have... I don't know. My magic plays havoc around you and Gwaine, much more so than it ever has with anybody else. Especially when you're together. I don't know."

That statement broke through the shock Gwen was going through. She crossed her arms and glared at Merlin. "Stop blaming your magic for everything! You sleep with Morgana, and it's the magic's fault. Every other client we meet, you're all over them because _your magic said so_. And now you've fucked somebody who wasn't even in his own capacity--!" With every sentence, she got louder and louder, and only Arthur's hand on her arm cut her off.

"Guinevere. It isn't his fault. I came to him, and I wanted it. Still want it."

"He'll never love you," Gwen said. "He's incapable of loving anybody! He's just looking for a willing hole for the night!"

Merlin inhaled sharply, surprised at how much that statement cut, coming from her. No matter that he often told people much the same thing, but to hear Gwen say it so matter-of-factly made it seem all the more true. 

"Hey," he interrupted, trying not to let his hurt show, "I think we have more important matters right now. Morgause's invasion isn't stopping itself."

"Right." Gwen wiped her hand across her eyes and straightened her shoulders. "Gwaine and Lance are contacting people they know. We should meet with them at our office in an hour. That should give everybody enough time to prepare."

She made her way to the door. "And for god's sake, get properly dressed. Morgana will laugh you out of town if you show up to fight her wearing each other's clothes."

The door slamming shut behind her seemed far too final. Merlin hoped that once this was all done, he still had his best friend.

* * *

Merlin was the first to arrive at the office. The ugly clock told him it was just a quarter to nine, far earlier than Merlin usually got there. He'd had to duck around some very obviously enchanted gang members on the way over, and he spent the remainder of his time setting up new protections in the office.

At nine on the dot, Gwen arrived with her brother in tow. They were each carrying a box, with another bag of what were obviously rifles slung over Elyan's back.

"Where's Lance?"

"He said he was going to go find a friend of his. The more people we have on our side, the better." Gwen set her box down and helped Elyan get all of his stuff settled. The first box contained small pistols, potentially something they'd be able to conceal in their coats or pants pockets. Ammunition was in the second box.

"The best of them is still at my shop," Elyan said. "I had to let her sit for a while, so the spells could set in properly."

"You do magic?"

"Nah, some old looking fella showed up at my store around two days ago, asked to commission a piece from me. He was very specific in how I was to make the alterations. At first I didn't even know why he was being so particular, but now that she's almost done, I can tell that she'll be a beauty."

Something about what he said nagged at Merlin, but before he had time to analyze, Gwen gasped loudly. She was holding one of the shotguns very carefully, rubbing her hand over the barrel and caressing it like a pet.

"You kept it," she said, her voice brimming with emotion. 

Elyan shrugged. "Figured the old man woulda wanted it used. He always said that a weapon wasn't any good until it got to protect somebody."

She nodded and averted her gaze from them. Merlin hoped that whatever had just passed between the two siblings, it was a good thing; Gwen had had enough trouble already. Elyan looked at a loss for words.

Thankfully, that was when the others started trickling in. First Lance, with a mountain of a man named Percival trailing behind them; then Arthur and Detective Kent, and finally, Gwaine with--

"Mordred?" Merlin had to do a double take just to make sure he was seeing right. His magic confirmed that it was Mordred in front of him, and not just a magical decoy.

"Who is this?" Arthur was standing too close to Merlin again, brushing just against him, and now there were three different pulls on Merlin's magic in the room. Arthur's aura might have been the loudest, but Mordred's magic was the most insistent, trying, as before, to invite Merlin to just sink in to him. 

It was tempting, so tempting, to just do as Mordred asked, but the audience around them managed to put some shame into Merlin when nothing else could. He desperately wrenched his magic away, towards Gwaine, and that exact moment when he was in contact with both Gwaine and Mordred at the same time, he finally knew why Gwaine had felt familiar even that first time they'd met.

"You're brothers."

Mordred nodded and Gwaine shrugged. 

"That's why you've got that nice apartment. And why all the people at the bar were wary of you." Merlin's eyes widened. "And why you were able to get into the speakeasy."

"Is this important?" Arthur asked. He squeezed Merlin's shoulder, trying to pull Merlin's attention back to him, and quite suddenly Merlin was free of Mordred, buffered by just Gwaine and Arthur.

That startled a cry out of Mordred, and he sent an accusing glare at Gwaine, at _his brother_. "Did you sleep with him?"

Oh no. Was he really going to drag everything out in front of all these people? Elyan, Lance, Leon, and Percival were all stepping further away from them, apparently not wanting to get involved, but Gwen stood her ground and shook her head disapprovingly.

"Mordred, I think this isn't the time." Gwaine gestured to the small crowd. "And--"

"Emrys is supposed to be mine!" The building shook, just for a small moment, and Merlin and Gwaine both flinched back from the sudden outburst of magic.

Arthur tightened his hand on Merlin's shoulder. "I think it's well established that Merlin doesn't form commitments to anybody."

Strangely, Gwaine actually looked troubled. "Wait, Mordred, were you and Merlin…?"

"If I'd known you two were brothers, I wouldn't have--"

Gwen snorted. "I don't think that would have stopped you, Merlin. After all, it's what, both Morgana _and_ Arthur now?"

The atmosphere in the room was turning frigid, and Merlin didn't think it was just his own discomfort. He suspected Mordred's magic played a part in that, but he didn't want to risk interfering with anything magical when Mordred was in that kind of mood. Merlin might have been the strongest sorcerer in town, but that didn't mean that Mordred wasn't a close second.

"Okay, I get it! I'm a cad. Can I remind everybody that Morgause has taken city hall, and that she plans on taking the rest of the city within the next few days? There are unkillable soldiers out there, I think we have more important things to worry about."

Leon coughed loudly. "Yes, I came to speak about that. I've managed to secure my precinct's police department, but from all the reports, that just isn't enough. I've talked with the others though. At this point, we're desperate enough to use magic against these things."

"Good man!" Gwaine said, maybe a tad louder than was necessary. "That's why I brought Mordred. My brother is, well, influential in druid circles. I think we could use their help to combat--"

"No." Mordred crossed his arms and glared at Merlin. "I was willing to help Emrys before, but not anymore. And especially not if we're working with a Pendragon."

Arthur stepped forward, until he was directly in front of Mordred. "I don't know who you are, or how much influence you hold, but consider this: if Morgause has her way, there won't be a city left for the druids to live in either."

"She wouldn't outlaw the means for us to make our livelihood."

A sarcastic comment was on the tip of Merlin's tongue -- he knew that Mordred made most of his money off of illegal magic trades, none of which would have been nearly so lucrative if they weren't illegal. Thankfully, Arthur truly didn't know who Mordred was, so he couldn't make matters worse with some anti-gang speech.

"I'm sorry for that. Working with Guinevere and Merlin, I realize that perhaps things aren't as black and white as I originally believed." Arthur sighed loudly. "Please, help us. Once this is all over, I'll do everything in my power to repeal Prohibition."

Everybody in the room gaped. So much so that Arthur lifted a hand to his hair, clearly feeling self-conscious. "I've never… that is, I knew that the reason my mother died wasn't because of magic. It was everything that drove her to take those potions in the first place. And if magic can't be fought without magic, I don't see how the city officials could stand a chance to win if it's outlawed in the first place."

"Damn, Mordred. I thought I'd never see the Princess admit to being wrong about anything. You should take his offer."

"Oh, shut up, Gwaine." Arthur kept his gaze firmly on Mordred.

Another long moment of intense scrutiny passed before Mordred nodded. It was slight, but everybody saw and understood how big of a gesture it was. 

The tension in the room eased immensely, and suddenly everybody had ideas about what they needed to do. Gwen and Elyan handed out weapons, though Mordred refused, saying he had better ways to keep unkillable soldiers busy.

"All right. Mordred and Leon, you need to head up the druid and the police contingents to try to drive back Morgause's soldiers. Doesn't matter that you can't kill them, just as long as you keep them contained and prevent them from hurting anybody." Nobody was surprised that Arthur was a natural leader. 

"Elyan, Lance, Percy and I will head down to the shop, pick up more weapons, see if we can find any magic users who might be willing to help." Gwen hefted her father's shotgun. 

"I'll be going to fight Morgause." Merlin clenched his fist. "I think I still owe her a punch to the head."

Arthur and Gwaine shared a look between them. "We're going with you," Gwaine said. "No way am I missing out on a story this big. Besides, you and the Princess will need somebody to have your back when you end up rushing in and doing something stupid."

Under other circumstances, Merlin and Arthur might have protested, but the air of urgency had everybody wanting to be on the move. Arthur just rolled his eyes and picked up his weapon and extra ammunition. 

Mordred stepped towards his brother, wrapped his hands around Gwaine's wrists, and chanted a quick protection spell. It wouldn't hold against anything strong, but it was enough to keep Gwaine from being taken out by a ricocheting bullet. The spell held the same tinge of warmth as all the wards around Gwaine's apartment had. 

"Thanks, kiddo," Gwaine said softly. "You take care of yourself, too. Mom wouldn't want to see you hurt. And we'll talk about everything after this."

Anger lingered in Mordred's eyes, flaring up in his aura, but Gwaine didn't react to it. Maybe it was something beyond Gwaine's ability to sense. Regardless, it made Merlin all the more eager to get going. If he had to choose between a vengeful Mordred and an angry Morgause...

Just as they were heading out the door, Merlin felt a whisper against his mind. _I won't forget this, Emrys._

Merlin shuddered at the obvious hurt and betrayal in Mordred's words. He hoped that, whatever revenge Mordred had planned, it would affect only Merlin.

* * *

Morgause's underlings guarded Hotel Fyrien. As they scouted the building from across the street, Merlin wondered if any of the men and women there had been with Nimueh's gang, and whether he would recognize any faces he came up against. 

"We can't go in there guns blazing," Arthur hissed. He was aiming his pistol in the general vicinity of the entrance, but he didn't bother to aim at anybody. Not that it would matter. Merlin could feel the rotted magic on them, the way it pulled at their souls to power the bodies.

They weren't just permanently alive: they were also as good as _dead_ , no free will left of their own. That had been the sacrifice Morgause had given in order to keep them in that unnatural state.

"I think we should just knock," Gwaine said.

Arthur made an exasperated sound. "Oh, right, and she'll just let us waltz right in there. Please, Miss Grayson, won't you allow us to arrest you?"

"She's already admitted that she wants Merlin. I don't think we're going to be able to fight our way through, and unless you know all the hidden nooks and crannies, Princess, sneaking in probably isn't an option either."

It was funny, watching the two of them snipe at each other, both with familiarity and growing annoyance. They couldn't agree on anything, and even in this tense situation, their voices started escalating with each successive verbal barb.

They really didn't have time for this. Merlin closed his eyes and reached out to the hotel with his magic.

Whatever cloaking spells Morgause had placed previously were gone. In its place was the presence of the Cup, gently drawing all power in the vicinity to itself. It was insidious in its subtlety -- he doubted Morgause or Morgana could feel it -- but it was taking everything it could to keep all of Morgause's underlings in their half-alive state.

Oh, if Morgause were even half the sorceress that Nimueh had been. Nimueh had warned Merlin about the Cup, even as she had tried to use it for her own purposes. "Old magic like this can never be truly controlled. But it can be diverted, coaxed to do your bidding."

Given enough time, maybe the Cup would turn on Morgause. For just the slightest moment, Merlin considered picking up and leaving. Let the people of Camelot fight their own battles; the city had never been particularly kind to Merlin.

But he was startled out of his dark thoughts by Gwaine's hand on his shoulder, just as Arthur bit out, "What do _you_ think, Merlin?"

Their auras had this strange trust aimed at Merlin, a trust so strong it grounded Merlin before any of his own magic could slip towards the Cup.

"Morgause already knows we're here." Merlin pointed towards the hotel entrance, where the not-alive people were clearing away and opening the doors. "She's welcoming us in."

"Told you so." Gwaine smirked at Arthur, though he squeezed Merlin's shoulder in a reassuring manner.

The bitter look that crossed Arthur's features was almost comical. "It's going to be a trap."

"It doesn't really matter what direction we come in from. With the Cup there, Morgause will always sense us."

Despite their misgivings, they only thing they could do was walk in.

Merlin had felt fear like this only once before in his life: the night he had confronted Nimueh. And even then he didn't think his fear had been this strong. It took him a moment to realize what the difference was. This time, he wasn't afraid for himself. He was afraid for other people.

It mattered that Arthur and Gwaine were with him. Their auras were reassuring, and at the same time he knew that if anything happened to them, he wouldn't be able to cope. He stopped and pulled on their sleeves, earning him a quizzical look from both of them.

"Whatever happens-- whatever happens in there, I want you two to know that I-- I--"

There was a sudden flare of absolute elation from Arthur --probably fueled by the love potion-- and a much more muted contentment from Gwaine. Was Merlin even supposed to be able to feel their emotions? He didn't think he'd ever gotten that kind of feedback from anybody else.

"I don't know if I'm even capable of the kind of intense emotions you two seem to have, but I do care. You two make me think that maybe I'm not doomed to be alone."

"Why would you be doomed to be alone?" Gwaine asked. 

"Yes, despite all your flaws, you never seemed to have trouble finding somebody to be with." Arthur seemed so honestly confused by the statement that Merlin had to laugh.

"Never mind. Just... thank you."

They did that thing again, sharing a look and somehow knowing what the other meant with it. Gwaine pressed a kiss to Merlin's forehead, while Arthur took Merlin's hand and kissed it. 

"Okay, enough of that. Let's go save the city." Merlin pulled away from the two of them and straightened his spine. No sense looking shaken before they'd even gotten into battle.

They crossed the street to the hotel and went inside.

Morgause and Morgana were sitting on a couch in one of the side lounges on the first floor. On the coffee table in front of them sat the Cup, filled to the brim with a red liquid. Blood.

Cenred and Agravaine stood by the bar, drinking what looked like high quality moonshine. 

"You're here," Morgause said, though she didn't bother to get up.

"I'm-- no, _we're_ here." Merlin shot a glance at Gwaine and Arthur, who nodded at him to continue.

"What do you hope to accomplish with your mindless followers?"

Morgause's shoes clacked loudly as she stood up. She slowly circled around the room, stopping in front of the sole window. Smoke was rising from the rooftops several streets away. "If you won't help me get what I want, I thought I'd just take the city instead. The entire country is diseased if it thinks it can keep magic down." Her eyes flared gold. "Well, no more. Magic cannot be contained. It wants to be used, and our so-called leaders need to be taught that lesson."

Arthur raised his revolver and aimed it at Morgause. "Miss Grayson, this is your last chance. Surrender peaceably, or I'll take you in for far worse than mere magic usage."

Morgana laughed and clapped her hands. "You and what army, brother dearest? And do you even have that kind of authority? The mayor of the city stands with us, after all."

All eyes flickered to Agravaine. To his credit, he actually did not appear to be particularly thrilled to be there. "It's as she says." His tone was as bland.

"Don't you care at all that people like Morgause are the reason your sister is dead?" Arthur's voice carried just a slight hint of desperation, and his hand shook slightly. 

Agravaine shrugged. "The reason my sister died is because of Uther Pendragon. I have nothing against you, Arthur, but you'll need to rethink your loyalties quickly." He waved vaguely in Merlin's direction. "Besides, it's a bit hypocritical of you to denounce me for allying with sorcerers at this point."

"So this is what you want? To rule a city of mindless slaves?"

Agravaine turned is gaze to Cenred now, who'd been standing perfectly still the entire time. "Here's at least one person who I can tolerate better now."

"Oh, enough of this," Morgause said. "Merlin, if you aren't here to surrender yourself and do my bidding, then I have no use for you or your toys." 

The sudden spell took Merlin by surprise. It was Gwaine who noticed first, who grabbed both of them and dragged them to the floor to avoid a blazing fireball flying overhead.

"You two handle Agravaine and Cenred!" Merlin shouted, recovering. "I'll deal with Morgause and Morgana!"

He got up and rushed at the sorceresses, lightning gathering in both of his hands. His focus minimized to just the swirl of magic in the room, their three unique auras and the Cup of Life, constantly taking taking taking.

He threw the first lightning bolt at Morgause and wasn't surprised when she grabbed hold of the magic and diverted it towards the window. The glass shattered, tiny shards crumbling to the floor. No matter. The second spell was aimed at Morgana, and she didn't have the same dexterity with magic that Morgause did. She couldn't divert it, only tried to block it with her own spells.

Merlin grinned when the hem of her skirt caught flame. "You've always thought we were equals, didn't you, Morgana?"

In that moment, when she sneered at him, Merlin wondered how he'd ever considered her beautiful. Even the way she wielded her magic against him was clumsy, and it was child's play to reflect the spell back at her.

At the same time, flame grazed his cheek. The sudden heat ripped a cry out of him, and he stumbled backwards. When he looked up, he saw Morgause's triumphant smirk.

"Not so easy to sense me when I have all of the Cup's magic to back me up, now is it?"

Shit. It was tempting to draw on that same power, but he could still remember the taste of the Cup's power, could still remember how hard it had been to rip himself away from it. No. He wiped the sweat from his brow and began chanting.

The far window shattered, letting the sounds of the street filter in. Shouting and gunshots and magic, all in a perfect stream of chaos. Behind him, Merlin could hear Arthur pleading with his uncle, the sound of a fist cracking against a jaw. He hoped they were holding their own, but he couldn't get distracted now.

He didn't miss the way Morgana, the fire on her dress quenched, and Morgause nodded to each other, so he readied himself to take the brunt of whatever spell they might throw his way. He kept mumbling words of power, not caring that they barely made sense anymore, only waiting for that opportunity to disrupt--

It wasn't even a proper spell they threw at him, just pure magical fury, ripping through his barriers and sending him sprawling backwards into the hard wood of the bar. 

"Merlin!"

Arthur's hands on him, pulling him upright, and that's when he saw the flash of Morgause's incoming spell. Somebody was shouting -- Gwaine? -- and there just wasn't enough time to even think.

Merlin grabbed Arthur and rolled, shielding Arthur with his own body. The electricity that went through his back was excruciating. He must have screamed, he couldn't imagine not screaming, but those sobs weren't his because he didn't have the breath for it.

His body hit the floor, unmoving.

"Merlin! Merlin!" Arthur grabbed at his shoulders, tried to get him to stand again, but Merlin's body remained rigid and still.

Morgana's shoes clacked loudly as she approached them. "Ah, how the mighty have fallen. Are you sure you don't want to switch sides, brother dearest? We might even let you keep your free will if you give up now."

"I don't know, it might be fun to have the son of Uther Pendragon kneeling at my feet. If I can't have Emrys..." But even as she laughed, Morgause began gathering magic again.

"Fuck. We're outgunned, Arthur." Gwaine's voice was close and low. "We need to get out of here."

"We can't just leave him!" Arthur's exclamation was followed by shots, then Morgana's laughter.

"You think measly bullets will harm us?"

Her magic pulled at the small pieces of metal and reversed their trajectory, made them arc across the room straight for Gwaine's heart. Though they were slower than if they'd been fired from a gun, the magic tied them to their target. Gwaine had no way to dodge. 

Air. He needed air. He inhaled.

Merlin yanked Gwaine's wrists, and rolled again, wincing at the way the bullet ripped through his back and exploded in his ribcage. The pain, the blood gushing from his mouth and back, none of it mattered at all because Morgause was not allowed to kill either of them. Arthur and Gwaine were his responsibility. He wouldn't let them die, it didn't matter who found out anymore.

He felt Gwaine's arms stiffen around him. Arthur might have said something, and Agravaine muttered a prayer against demons. More blood gurgled out of Merlin's mouth, almost like a chuckle. 

Gwaine's face, inches away from Merlin's, reflected pure horror. Merlin tried to smile at him, but it must have come out all wrong, because Gwaine's hands dropped away, pushed Merlin off him and scrambled away. Gwaine's neck and the front of his shirt were speckled with blood that had dripped down Merlin's chin.

"What are you?" Gwaine asked, voice hoarse and terrified as he stood up. Merlin eased to his side, then to his feet, magic coursing through him and forcing his heart to pump.

Out of the corner of his eye, Merlin could make out the blurry shape of Arthur training his gun on him.

Morgause's laugh echoed through the room. "Seems like you've lost your friends." 

Every step he took to turn around and face her made more blood spurt out of him. It took him several tries to speak; the words kept getting clogged with fluid, his tongue didn't move properly. "Still-- still won't help."

Her eyes carried the same wildness he'd seen in Nimueh during her final moments. "Why not? You deny me what you've already claimed for yourself!"

Morgana's eyes widened, and for the first time it seemed like she was completely out of her element. She hadn't known. Morgause had never seen fit to tell her. 

He knew Arthur and Gwaine probably hated him now; Merlin was inhuman, and even among magic users, Merlin was dangerous beyond the norm. But he couldn't fight in this state. So he reached out, pulled at their auras and let their strange resonance speed the healing. It didn't have to be perfect. He just needed to not have a hole in his back. 

He thought he might cry in how good it felt to be connected to them, knowing that this would probably be the last time. He stood a bit straighter. "It's not worth the cost, Morgause. Immortality--" Merlin nearly screamed as his body started mending bone-- "Immortality can't get you what you want."

"And yet here you stand, despite all the blood pouring from you like a fountain. Nimueh always did favor you. I have to admit that I'm curious though. How did you convince Nimueh to let you do the spell first? I assume you killed her once you had no more use for her." Her eyes shifted towards Morgana, and she was planning… she was planning something.

Merlin's vision clouded, and no matter how hard he concentrated he couldn't keep himself from swaying. Just a bit longer. He'd be fine. "I didn't want this. Nimueh--" and finally, his back was whole again, or whole enough that he could lift an arm. "Nimueh thought with our two magics combined, there would be enough for her to claim immortality. She was still mad with grief over what Uther Pendragon had done to her. She wanted to survive forever, so she could destroy his legacy."

The memory was still strong: her wild eyes, the power collecting around her. Worst of all, Merlin remembered the smell of her charred flesh and the immense pain when all of her power transferred to him, rewrote his aura in such a way that it was permanently tied to the earth.

All of it so she could thwart one man. Merlin had never understood back then, but now he thought he might be close to knowing that kind of all-consuming drive. 

Arthur lowered his gun slowly, like he wasn't sure whether Merlin was a threat or not. Merlin couldn't blame him, not when Merlin knew just how fathomless his own well of power was.

"You're-- you're still yourself?" Gwaine asked. His eyes narrowed, and then Merlin felt a tentative touch through their auras. It was the first time Gwaine had actively reached out, and Merlin couldn't stop the sob that escaped him. Blood dripped out of his mouth again.

"Yes. But this isn't the time--"

Oh. Morgause's magic was filling the entire room, cutting through the flimsy tie Gwaine had established, nearly choking Merlin with its toxicity. 

"You might not be able to die, Merlin, but I've been assured there are many things worse than death." She glanced at Morgana. "Kill one of his boyfriends."

Gwaine reacted as soon as the words were out of her mouth and fired his shotgun at Morgause, but the slug curved around her, following the stream of magic. It was like a whirlwind, with Morgana and Morgause at the center, and nothing Gwaine or Arthur fired at them could get near. Even Agravaine looked terrified.

"With pleasure." Morgana's eyes glowed golden, and her lips mouthed a familiar spell. _Fire._

All of Merlin's energy was going into staying upright, but if he could just get Arthur and Gwaine behind him again -- if they were willing to use him as a shield again -- he could keep them safe. Gwaine was frantically reloading.

Another shot rang out.

Morgana's eyes widened.

The front of her dress bloomed bright red.

And she dropped, face forward, to the floor, her magic dissipating instantly. Not weak, not fading, just gone.

"Morgana!" Morgause cried out, her magic flaring loudly.

Across from all of them, at the entrance to the room, stood Gwen. A thin trail of smoke wafted from her revolver.

"That was for my father, that was for Will, that was for Arthur, that was for _me_." Gwen's hand shook lightly, but she spoke with clear conviction. "You won't hurt any of my friends again."

"How--?" But it was clear to Merlin how she did it, how her bullet had managed to penetrate that shield. Her revolver absolutely glowed with magic, both old and new at the same time, like a flame that had been long-stoked. No magic would ever stop a bullet fired from that gun.

Morgause's cry of grief cut off abruptly, and she set her gaze on Gwen. The fury poured off her in waves, drawing on the power from the Cup. Gwen stumbled backwards, the magic so strong that even she could feel it now.

Arthur, his gun useless, tried to tackle Morgause, but she swatted him aside like a fly and sent him crashing against Gwen. The revolver hurtled out of Gwen's hand.

"The Cup! Shoot the Cup!" Merlin shouted, throwing up his own magical barriers, not sure who he was giving the orders to. He wondered if he should have been trying to go for the revolver, but the moment his concentration slipped they'd all be consumed by the Cup's raw power that Morgause was drawing on.

He had to dig deep to find the power within himself to keep her and the Cup in check. Their combined power, channeling every bit of magic it had absorbed, was almost too much. Merlin felt stretched thin, brittle and exhausted, but he was desperate too, and that only made him that much more determined. He dug his heels in and braced himself against the onslaught.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gwaine scrambling across the room. Arthur managed to get up, and the two of them made it to the revolver at almost the same time.

Morgause noticed as well, and she let out another shriek. It took everything that Merlin had to keep her magic from bowling Arthur and Gwaine over. As it was, the winds in the room were making it hard to keep standing, and anything that wasn't nailed down was took a life of its own. Papers, glass tumblers, even lamps clattered and took to the air. 

"Merlin, look out!" 

Gwen's warning came a moment too late. A small side table crashed into him, and Merlin fell to the floor. Morgause took advantage of his distraction to wrench Arthur and Gwaine towards her -- Arthur yelped and Gwaine wrapped his arms around Arthur's waist.

Fuck.

Merlin's hand whipped out and grabbed hold of Gwaine just as they were hurtling past him. He didn't even have time to enjoy the resonance, he just anchored all three of them to the floor.

"Can you keep us from moving?" Arthur yelled. He brought his arms up and aimed straight at the Cup of Life, which still sat innocuously on the coffee table in the center of the room.

"Just make it quick!" Merlin's voice was raspy from exertion. His body wanted nothing more than to collapse and let the cup of life's magic flow through him, but he couldn't let that happen. He wasn't going to let Morgause win. 

Gwaine squeezed his hand. "Just shoot, Princess."

Arthur did.

Merlin watched the bullet travel through the storm, watched it burst through the Cup. The Cup tipped and fell to its side. The blood spilled out.

The pressure in the room disappeared instantly, sending relief through Merlin, only to be replaced by Morgause's wail. "I'll kill you! I'll kill all of you!"

No. No. No. Merlin stood up straight and took those few steps towards Morgause. It was easy to lock her in place now with a silent spell, drained as she was. He drew her chin up so he could look her straight in the eyes. They were still completely gold, and nothing but fury showed on her face.

"I told you all those years ago to leave me alone. You should have listened." His fingers dug into her cheek, and there, the first hint of fear in her eyes. "You hurt so many people. I killed Nimueh for less than what you've done."

"No. Emrys, Emrys, you can't--" Her voice broke off into a strangled cry. 

Her heart popped in his magical grip. He could feel her magic oozing out with her lifeblood, that faint whiff of toxicity seeping into him, corrupting him the way Nimueh's magic had and--

"Merlin!" Gwaine placed a hand on Merlin's shoulder, and Merlin, startled, just about collapsed into him. "What did you do?"

"I couldn't-- I couldn't let her live. Do you really think a jail cell would have held her?" Merlin couldn't bring himself to raise his voice above a whisper. A part of him thought maybe he should feel bad, but he'd never had regrets about killing anybody before, and he wasn't going to start for Morgause.

Maybe this would be the breaking point, he thought. Maybe this would be what drove both Gwaine and Arthur away, and how stupid was it that he was thinking of his love life when the city was still half in shambles and there were far more important things to worry about.

Like Gwen. Merlin pushed Gwaine off and walked over to where she was lying. Arthur was already helping her up, asking her how she was feeling.

Footsteps alerted them to a newcomer. Merlin turned his head and saw Lance running towards them.

"Gwen! Gwen!"

Gwen didn't even hesitate. She opened her arms and let Lance hug her, and then she kissed him, very solidly. Arthur pointedly looked at Merlin and mouthed, _see?_ at him.

Right. Gwen was definitely not over Lance. Not that it was much of a surprise, though he still thought that Gwen might have chosen Arthur if not for... everything.

Merlin swayed on his feet for a moment, then steadied himself, willing his body to hold out for just a bit longer. He couldn't collapse just yet. He still had things to do.

Like take care of Agravaine, who had righted a bar chair and was now sitting on it, hair wild, clothes torn, smoking a cigarette. Arthur followed his line of sight.

"You're under arrest, Uncle." Arthur approached him, slowly, limping prominently. "Are you going to make trouble?"

"No, I don't think I'd get very far." Agravaine kicked Cenred's corpse. "I guess in the end, you did clean up the city. Tristan would be proud."

Arthur visibly winced, either from pain or from Agravaine's statement. He did manage to pull himself up onto the only other stool still upright, and extended a hand out to Agravaine. "A cigarette, please? We can stay here until the proper authorities arrive."

When they sat like that, both with smoke wafting from their lips, Merlin thought he could see the family resemblance. He couldn't imagine going against his own family, and it was good that Arthur was a lot stronger than Merlin in that regard.

Merlin hobbled over to the couch and collapsed. "Are we all done here?"

"Just one question, and then I think you can sleep." Gwaine settled in next to Merlin, close enough so that their thighs were touching. He held Gwen's gun in his hands.

It was still radiating its powerful magic. Along its side there was an engraving. Excalibur.

"Why did this particular gun work? None of the other ones could even get close to them."

Merlin rested his head against Gwaine's shoulder. "Magic. Really old magic. Maybe as old as the Cup of Life."

Gwaine shrugged, and then he kissed Merlin's forehead. "Okay, I'll put that in my story." He laughed softly. "I think this could make my career. People will be dying to read my eye-witness account."

"Will it be in the papers tomorrow?"

"Ha, I think I'm going to sleep for a week first."

Merlin felt pretty much the same, but when Arthur got up to make a telephone call to the police station, he knew that the time for resting was over.

* * *

Camelot Tribune

**Cops and Gangs Unite to Meet Undead Threat**

Camelot, October 1st 1927 -- Chaos overran Camelot's streets yesterday as magically enhanced members of the Sisters gang destroyed four neighborhoods and attacked city hall. By all eye-witness accounts, Sisters gang members were untouchable and immune from harm, including normal bullets. They looted and burned shops and homes, using magic as a weapon, and 58 people were killed. The full out destruction of the city was only prevented by the police joining forces with the magical strength of the South Siders gang.

The police response in Escetia took the brunt of the fighting. "We had to pull back to 15th St, and we wouldn't have survived if the druids hadn't shown up," said Detective Leon Kent of the 15th precinct. He joined forces with members of the South Siders gang, led by a young man with dark hair who disappeared from the scene at the end of the battle. Kent credits the druids' magic with containing the Sisters to relatively small areas of the city and saving lives.

Witness reports say the well-known animosity between druids and law enforcement was set aside during the attack. A few police officers were even seen wielding their own previously hidden magic, and druids took up more traditional arms to supplement their magical attacks as they fought side-by-side to drive back the undead fighters.

The Sisters' attack began around seven a.m. the morning of Sept. 30. The gang divided into three groups that attacked the neighborhoods of Mercia, Escetia and Caerleon, while a fourth group attacked city hall, where 36 people were killed. All security measures that had been implemented since the Ygraine Act passed failed against the magical onslaught.

The battle ended abruptly at ten forty a.m. when all the enchanted Sisters fell over dead. "It was like their strings were cut," said Kent. 

Police credit the death of Morgause Grayson, known leader of the Sisters. Grayson was found dead in Fyrien Hotel in the remains of a magical battle. The bodies of her long-time lover and accomplice, Cenred King, and her half-sister Morgana le Fay were also recovered. Police say there is evidence that Grayson used a magical artifact to create the black magic enchantment. The name and description of the artifact are being withheld, but police say it has been safely locked away in an undisclosed location. 

Mayor Agravaine de Bois was found to be collaborating with the Sisters' attack on Camelot. Police have said that Mayor de Bois has also confessed to involvement in Chief Tristan de Bois's murder, who is now believed to have been on the verge of uncovering Mayor de Bois's treachery. Agravaine de Bois has been removed from office, and Rodon Nemeth is now interim mayor.

"Now is a time to be calm and to rebuild," said Nemeth in his first address to the city. He has called for volunteers to help clear out the damaged neighborhoods and for citizens to be generous to their neighbors.

In the aftermath of the battle, Camelot's generosity may take a strange turn. Magical and non-magical citizens alike have turned up to help the recovery efforts. 

So far the city has not called for any retaliating action against the magic using community for the attack of one gang, as has happened in the past. 

* * *

Gwen went home with Lance; not that much of a surprise, given the circumstances. What did surprise Merlin was that Arthur invited both him and Gwaine back to his apartment. They took care of arresting Agravaine and getting a cleanup crew. While nobody was looking, Merlin even managed to get the Cup of Life stowed away. He went home after that, to bathe and change his clothes, to wipe away any traces of his death earlier.

Gwaine was waiting for him at the stairs to Arthur's apartment. "I didn't think the Princess would want me there without you," he confessed. "But I couldn't not come either."

They had barely knocked when the door was flung open. Arthur must have been standing right there, waiting. "Come in."

The first thing he noticed about Arthur's apartment was how clean it was. No dust in any of the corners, no clutter on the coffee table, no photos or knickknacks on any surfaces. Even Gwaine's apartment, as nice as it was, couldn't hold a candle to the elegance that exuded from every inch of Arthur's domicile.

"Still haven't decorated, I see," Gwaine remarked casually, but he plopped himself onto the sofa like he belonged there. And maybe he did. Maybe Gwaine and Arthur had spent a lot of time together on that couch.

Merlin wasn't sure if he should sit on the sofa with Gwaine, or if it would be more prudent to take one of the chairs. Arthur took the spot opposite Gwaine on the sofa, so the only space left on it was right in between them.

Merlin sat in the chair.

He couldn't look them in the eyes, so his gaze ended up dropping to his own hands. His fingernails were still dirty, flecks of blood caught in his cuticles. Merlin's discomfort grew so much that he stood up again.

"I shouldn't be here."

"Sit down." Arthur's voice was sharp and angry.

Arthur couldn't really do much to stop Merlin, but Merlin sat down anyway. He tried to come up with the right words to say, but nothing seemed to fit, so he kept silent.

Gwaine broke the silence. "You lied to us."

"Yes." The first bad habit he'd gotten into, and the one bad habit his mother had never been able to break him of.

"You didn't think it was important to mention?" 

Merlin shook his head. "It doesn't… it didn't affect you. I don't--"

Arthur slammed a fist against the coffee table. "Doesn't affect us? I thought you were _dead_! You could have saved us so much grief if you'd mentioned that, by the way, you _can't die_!" 

And there, his voice cracked, enough that Merlin caught the faintest shimmer of tears in his eyes. Gwaine's mouth was set in a hard line, but it looked like he was as affected as Arthur.

"It's unnatural. I'm not supposed to be like this."

"Merlin." It was obvious that it was costing Gwaine to keep his tone even. "Do you think either of us cares about something like that? I've had enough people telling me that _I'm_ unnatural, for liking men, but you don't see me hiding it."

Arthur snorted at that, a slight hint of a smile. "As if you could hide anything."

"And--" Gwaine rolled his eyes, but otherwise ignored Arthur, "right now, I'm glad you're immortal. Sorry, but I wasn't ready to see you killed. Not for my sake."

Silence stretched again, the awkwardness between them all palpable. Finally Arthur coughed and ask, "So, where does that leave us?"

"I should probably leave town." Merlin slumped further into his chair. "I could hop on a train, go to California. Or join a Vaudeville act, like that Houdini fellow did. He used magic, by the way. Said he didn't but I caught him at it the one time he was passing through. I think he died because he actually tried an escape without magic. Or hey, magic isn't banned in Canada. Sure, it gets cold up there but at least I could make an honest living. Or--"

"Merlin, stop it." Arthur leaned forward and placed a hand on Merlin's knee. "I'm still a bit angry, but I don't want you to leave. You don't have to leave. Nobody else knows."

Gwaine nodded and scooted closer, until he could touch Merlin's hand. "Just don't keep secrets from us anymore."

They didn't understand. Secrets were the only thing Merlin really had. He'd grown up with them, they were second nature to him. Even telling them this much had left him feeling raw and exposed. He took a deep breath and looked up, first into Gwaine's eyes, then Arthur's. His magic slid from one to the other, not really a strong pull, just enough to ground him to the moment.

"My magic loves you two," he whispered. "It feels really amazing to be with you, but even without that... I really like both of you."

Arthur and Gwaine looked at each other, nodded. They both extended a hand to him. 

"I still don't know how long this potion will last, but right now... I don't care what I have to do. I don't want to give you up."

"If the Princess is willing to try, I'm in too."

Merlin hesitated only a moment before taking their hands. He shivered, feeling the resonance vibrate through him. "Touch each other."

Arthur and Gwaine did as he asked, clasping hands, and the resonance seemed to double in strength, so much that even Arthur felt it. "Is this-- is this your magic?"

"No, this is all three of us." He glanced at them. "I've always been sensitive to other people's auras. Morgana-- she felt good, but never anything like this. And the two of you... you play off each other in such a complimentary way. It's better with both of you than just one."

Gwaine groaned. "Shit, Merlin, if this is what you feel all the time, I don't know how you manage to function on a normal day."

The irony almost made Merlin laugh -- his penchant for letting his magic lead him by his dick had caused him more than enough trouble -- but then Arthur was pulling him up, kissing him, all while Gwaine was still _touching_ both of them, and that was too much.

"I think we need to take this into the bedroom before we start humping on Arthur's living room floor," Gwaine said.

Merlin wanted to nod, but Arthur wasn't giving in, only taking a few quick breaths before kissing Merlin again. Gwaine somehow herded them into the bedroom though, pushing and pulling at them softly, grounding Merlin when he was on the verge of getting swept up by Arthur.

Somebody tripped, and with all of them holding on to each other they all ended up landing in a pile on the bed. Gwaine let out a soft chuckle, and Merlin took the opportunity to pull himself away from both of them -- even if he didn't really want to.

"We should-- we should take our clothes off," he managed to say, and he didn't wait for them to agree. He just started undoing the buttons on his shirt. He looked up briefly, and that was a mistake, because his fingers froze as he watched Gwaine undo Arthur's tie like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Damn, they looked amazing together. "Kiss him," Merlin whispered, not sure which of them he was ordering but it didn't really matter. 

Arthur tilted his head and Gwaine took the invitation, didn't so much coax as force Arthur's mouth open. Arthur's hands started running over Gwaine's chest, pulling at the vest and pushing it off Gwaine's shoulders. 

Merlin crawled over to them and placed a hand on each of them.

The effect was instantaneous: Arthur groaned loudly and Gwaine lost his balanced and collapsed on top of Arthur. Merlin tugged on his shoulder to pull them off each other, then leaned down to kiss Arthur, all while letting his magic roam over Gwaine.

"Merlin, you keep doing that I'll come before I even pull my pants off," Gwaine said, his voice quite obviously strained. Merlin couldn't help grinning at that, even though the slight pause in kissing made Arthur protest.

Merlin drew back and ignored Arthur's hands reaching for him. "Okay, clothes off for real." He winked at Gwaine, then turned his attention Arthur. He whispered a few words under his breath, and in a matter of moments the seams of Arthur's clothes came apart, each piece of fabric dropping away.

Arthur sat stunned, just a moment, until he glared at Merlin. "Was that necessary?"

"No, but it was fun. Don't you think, Gwaine?" 

Gwaine finished pulling off his pants and underwear and nodded. "Yep. And look, I'm naked, you don't need to shred _my_ clothes."

Before Arthur could start whining, Merlin began kissing him again. This time he let his magic trail over Arthur; unfortunately, without Gwaine touching him, it seemed that Arthur really couldn't feel it at all.

Gwaine must have noticed what was happening though, because he placed a hand loosely around Arthur's cock. Arthur let out a loud gasp and clawed Merlin's back, pulling him closer just as Gwaine pushed down on Merlin's hips. Merlin groaned and pulled back.

"Make up your minds, you two."

Gwaine and Arthur briefly exchanged looks.

"I'll suck him, you take his mouth," Gwaine suggested. 

Arthur nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, yeah, you always did have good ideas in bed." He maneuvered Merlin onto his back and climbed on top of his chest, his cock bumping Merlin's chin. Just before he thrust in, he looked down and asked, "Is this all right?"

Merlin snorted. "Trust me, neither of you can make me do anything I don't want to." To prove his point, he tugged on Arthur's hips and licked the tip of his cock. Arthur shivered slightly, then pressed his dick past Merlin's lips. 

It was different, tasting Arthur with Gwaine in the room, watching them, touching them. Less intense, but better: Merlin could concentrate on what he was doing, and he didn't lose control as easily. He could vary the pressure and curl his tongue along Arthur's cock, and--

Merlin nearly choked when his own cock was enveloped by Gwaine's warm mouth. Shit. He tried to breathe deeply, but his entire rhythm was shot. He couldn't predict when Arthur would thrust or when Gwaine would suck harder, and he was left with no choice but to give himself over to their whims.

From the smirk on Arthur's face, the two of them knew exactly what they were doing. 

Well, two--three--could play at that game. Merlin reached out for Gwaine's hand and brought it to rest with his on Arthur's hip, then let magic flow through his fingertips. Arthur gave a strangled gasp and fell forward, completely obscuring Merlin's vision, but it was so worth it to see Arthur losing control.

Then Gwaine brought a finger between Merlin's ass cheeks, and his magic skittered outwards, intensifying all of the sensations. 

"I'm--" Arthur said, but it wasn't really a warning at all. Merlin hollowed out his cheeks and urged Arthur on, reveled in how Arthur cried out his orgasm. 

As Arthur pulled away, his come splattered on Merlin's face. 

"Fuck, that's hot," Gwaine muttered, crawling up the length of the bed. 

Arthur rubbed his thumb through some of the come. "It's a good look," he agreed. He looked at Gwaine then, and Merlin tensed, wondering if Arthur was jealous, but surprisingly, Arthur slid off Merlin and kissed Gwaine.

Merlin could get used to a show like this. He began stroking himself with one hand and Gwaine with the other, taking in all the small details: Arthur running his tongue over Gwaine's lip, Gwaine's Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed, the small hint of teeth.

"I think I'm going to jerk off to the memory of this a lot." Merlin set his magic out again and reveled in their groans. If only he could live on this magical euphoria alone.

Gwaine broke away from Arthur and gave Merlin a kiss that was just as sloppy. His hand landed over Merlin's on his own cock, and Arthur tangled his fingers on the hand covering Merlin's, and it didn't take more than two strokes to have Merlin sobbing and coming. He fell back, completely limp and mellowed and feeling more at ease with himself than he had in a long time.

Arthur used his now sticky hand to push Merlin aside and stroke Gwaine in earnest, saying something to him that made Gwaine laugh. "Okay, Princess, if you want to take Merlin later, let me have your ass for now."

"That isn't what I meant!" Arthur protested, though there wasn't much conviction in his voice.

"I'd love to see it," Merlin said, and he sat up to get a better view. 

Gwaine pushed Arthur forward, forced his hips up and his head down to Merlin's cock. "Merlin, can you help me out here?"

The spell to summon an unguent was familiar to Gwaine, but Arthur gasped in surprise as cool liquid breached his hole. Gwaine seemed to know exactly how to move his fingers to reduce Arthur to incoherency. Every gasp, curse, and exhale that Arthur made brushed against made Merlin's cock give a few half-hearted twitches.

"Yeah, Princess, you always complain, and then you always love it when I give it to you." Gwaine thrust into Arthur with a grunt, and Merlin thought he had never seen anything more arousing in his life. Tentatively, he placed a hand on Gwaine's shoulder and the other on Arthur's head, and let just a hint of magic touch them.

"Oh fuck," Gwaine growled, and he began thrusting frantically. Arthur kept begging, "more, more," and Merlin gave them more of his magic, more of himself, until Arthur was sobbing and Gwaine reached his release.

Gwaine collapsed and pulled out of Arthur, come dribbling down Arthur's leg. Arthur scooted away and pulled Merlin to lie between them.

For a moment none of them said anything. Merlin didn't think they could really speak at this point. 

Maybe if he knew he had this to come home to, other magical auras wouldn't hold as much attraction. 

"Love you," Arthur slurred, and the expected regret never came. Merlin _liked_ hearing Arthur saying that.

Gwaine pulled a corner of the sheet up and wiped Merlin's face. "Let's do that again, a lot."

Merlin smiled. "Yeah. At least once a week."

The sound of Arthur and Gwaine's ensuing laughter gave Merlin hope that maybe this could last.


	2. Epilogue

The telephone finally stopped ringing. Merlin wasn't entirely sure how long it would last, but he crossed his fingers and hoped people would stop demanding their services. Ever since Gwaine's article had been published, naming Smith & Emrys as key players in the fight to save Camelot, their small detective agency had become inundated with requests.

"Maybe we should hire a receptionist?" Gwen asked. She was slumped forward over her desk, clearly just as tired as he was. "We can't really handle all of these calls, and a receptionist would free us up to go out and do proper work."

A month ago, they wouldn't have been able to afford a receptionist, but now that didn't seem like it would be an issue. "Do you know anybody who's looking for a job?"

"Lance said his friend Percival needs work."

Merlin considered it for a moment, then nodded. Percival had the added advantage of looking tough enough to scare off potential trouble-makers. "Sure, let him know next time you see Lance." 

"At dinner tonight," Gwen said with a small smile. "He's taking me to that druid restaurant where the food glows in the dark."

"Oh, I heard about that place! I keep meaning to go and see how they do it." It was nice that the smaller, benign forms of magic were being tolerated more now. "How are things with Lance anyway?"

"We're... we're taking it slow. Actually talking about things now. I think he understands that I'm mad not because he left, but because he left without telling me, and because he thought he was 'protecting' me." 

Merlin smiled, happy that she was working things out. After everything they'd gone through, it was nice to see that they were starting to get their happily ever after. 

The telephone rang again, and Merlin groaned. Gwen picked up, gave whoever was on the other end their operating hours and standard fees -- they had raised the fees, after the increase in demand -- and negotiated an appointment time.

She shook her head when she hung up. "I almost miss the days when we had free mornings. But in any case, how are you getting along with Gwaine and Arthur? Or rather, how are _they_ getting along?"

That was an interesting question, one that Merlin wasn't entirely sure how to answer. He tilted the chair back a bit while he mulled it over. Finally, he said, "Like you and Lance, we're all taking it slow. I think it's a bit harder for Arthur to accept things as they are -- he gets jealous of Gwaine every so often -- but they get along a lot better than they'd be willing to admit."

"Does it look like… does it look like the love potion is going to wear off?" 

That was something that Merlin dreaded every day, even though he suspected he would ultimately be relieved when the waiting was over. But he shook his head. "Arthur insists it's not a spell in that sense. It has to happen naturally. If we grow apart, we grow apart. If not…." He shrugged. "I offered to look into it, but he refused, and Gwaine told me it wasn't worth the trouble. So I guess I can rest easy for now."

He looked up at the hideous clock -- still hanging despite Arthur's offers to buy them a new one -- and stood up. "Actually, I'm meeting them for lunch. I'll see you in a bit, all right?"

Gwen waved him out, and Merlin made his way towards the café he, Arthur, and Gwaine had taken to frequenting lately.

Athur and Gwaine were already sitting at a table in the far back, away from peering eyes. Arthur had was a bit wary of gossip-mongers lately. Didn't stop Arthur and Gwaine from having a loud discussion though, and Merlin winced when he caught a particularly heated exchange.

"No, I'm not budging, and that's final!" Arthur's face tinted slightly red.

Whatever Gwaine might have said in response was cut short when Merlin sat in the only other chair at the table. "Are you two ever going to get along?"

"I get along with the Princess just fine," Gwaine said with a grin. He looked around the café for a moment, then pulled Merlin in for a quick kiss. Arthur bit his lip, but he made no move to mimic the gesture.

Merlin was getting used to how different the two of them acted. In private, it seemed like Arthur was the more passionate of them, but in public, Gwaine was far more open with his affection. 

He reached out and quickly squeezed both of their wrists, letting his magic touch just for a second. It made both of them smile, and he sat back, reveling in how handsome they both looked like that. "So, what are the two of you arguing about?"

Arthur sighed, and Gwaine shook his head. 

"Gwaine thinks he has the right to tell me what I'm to do with my career."

"No, I was just giving you my opinion on how you're setting yourself up for massive disappointment." Gwaine knocked his knee against Merlin's leg under the table; Merlin ignored it, mostly because he wasn't sure yet if he wanted to get involved.

"Do you really believe I haven't thought it through yet? I know what I'm doing. If nothing else, it's in my blood."

"I guess that'll be the headline news. 'Pendragon follows in his father's and uncle's footsteps!' Is that really what you want?"

"Um… I'm really confused about what's going on here."

Gwaine looked about to give the full explanation, right up until Arthur loudly kicked him in the shin.

"Just make sure to read the papers tomorrow," Arthur said while Gwaine hissed in pain. "It was nice to see you, but I do have a lot of things to do this afternoon. You and Gwaine can do… whatever it is you two do."

Arthur stood up to go, but he paused to place his hand on Merlin's shoulder and squeeze it briefly. "I'll see you tonight at my place?"

"Yes, of course."

Merlin watched Arthur go, and noticed that some of the other patrons in the café were murmuring when he walked past them. Well, it didn't matter to Merlin. He turned his attention back to Gwaine, who was also turned toward the door.

"Are you going to tell me?"

"No, I guess he wants it to be a surprise." Gwaine rolled his eyes. "The Princess never could do things by half. Everything has to be a grandiose gesture." 

They ordered food and chatted about trivial things, though Merlin's mind kept wandering back to Arthur's words.

"Is Mordred still not speaking to you?" Merlin asked as his sandwich arrived.

Gwaine threw up his hands. "I don't know. He's more mad at you than at me, and he was civil enough when we went home to visit our mother, but it's not how it used to be. All the wards he placed on my apartment are gone too." He took a gulp from his drink. "Maybe he'll lighten up once he sees what Arthur is up to."

Merlin grinned, glad to have the topic circle back to Arthur. "Do I get even a little hint about what that might be?" 

"Okay, I guess you'll probably hear about it before the paper is out anyway. Here." Gwaine reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper. "I wrote this for tomorrow. It's already going to the presses. Just don't let him know I showed it to you."

Merlin read it once, then immediately read it again because he wasn't sure he'd gotten it right, that maybe he'd been misreading Gwaine's handwriting. But when it did sink in, he started laughing.

"You're right that he's going to get hell from all sides for this. I think this is something he needs to do though."

Gwaine nodded. "It's probably what drove us apart the first time. He gets ambitious like this, and I just think it's a waste of time and would cause too much trouble. But if there's anybody who should be doing the job, it's Arthur. I guess…" Gwaine ducked his head, causing his hair to fall over his face, "I guess I'm a bit proud of him."

"Yeah, me too."

Merlin couldn't wait to show Gwen the paper the next day. For once, the news looked bright.

* * *

Camelot Tribune

**Arthur Pendragon Enters Mayoral Race**

Camelot, November 1st 1927 -- At a rally yesterday morning that was attended by both druids and non-druids, Arthur Pendragon announced that he will be joining Camelot's mayoral race.

This comes at a time when Pendragon's popularity has risen drastically. In the recent attack on the city he was instrumental in bringing Morgause Grayson and Agravaine de Bois, former mayor and Pendragon's uncle, to justice. In the aftermath of the attack, Pendragon refused to prosecute any use of magic that was benign in nature. 

Yesterday he announced his new stance in supporting a full repeal of the Ygraine Act. 

"I have made many friends who are sorcerers in the past weeks," Pendragon said at the rally. "I now understand how the Ygraine Act is fundamentally against the Constitution, which was designed to protect the rights of individuals, not take them away. As a state, we cannot remove a man's livelihood and then punish him for being poor."

Pendragon promised that, should he be elected, he would ensure that whatever the federal government decided, in Camelot Prohibition would not be enforced. He went on to say that, "However, I do not believe changing Camelot is enough. I will work hard to work with lobbyists and other anti-Prohibition groups to help restore freedoms to all."

His announcement was met with roaring applause.

Pendragon's change of heart was prompted by recent events when police and druids came together to repel Morgause Grayson's magical attack on Camelot. He was a staunch supporter of the Ygraine Act, and was prosecuting violators as little as a month ago. 

In an interview after the rally, he confided that while he was initially unsure, the events of Sept. 30 showed him that while some would abuse power, others exist to wield it responsibly. "It's not unlike with firearms. If we can trust a man to use a firearm solely for the protection of his family and property, surely we can trust magicians and sorcerers to do the same," he said.

So far, no opposition party has yet been established, though some believe Interim Mayor Rodon Nemeth may decide to run against Pendragon.

Governor Uther Pendragon has made no comment yet about his son's decision to join the mayoral race or on Arthur Pendragon's new stance regarding Prohibition.

**\--G. Orkney**

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Art for "Crime in Magic City " by chicago_ruth](https://archiveofourown.org/works/912127) by [La_Temperanza](https://archiveofourown.org/users/La_Temperanza/pseuds/La_Temperanza)




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